Sophia and Her Nontraditional Family
by EL Hyland
Summary: Morgan, Reid and Garcia adopted a girl they saved seven years ago. This story follows their adventures as parents to Sophia, a fifteen year old who they all co-parent. Many Mother/Daughter and Father/Daughter moments.
1. Chapter 1

Everybody has that one victim they save, the one they can't let go of. For Morgan, Reid and Garcia, it was the same person. Sophia's father died in the line of duty, like Morgan's, her mother was plagued with mental illness, like Reid's, and when her mother took her own life she became an orphan, like Garcia. She connected with them all and they all wanted to make sure that this one stayed safe.

Agents know how it works, you save someone and they became attached to you because of it. Eventually, it wears off and things go back to normal for the victim. But Sophia was different. Morgan rescued her from the same people that killed her father, they said it was unfinished business. When he handed her over to Reid, they both felt that connection.

They had no one to give her to, no relatives or guardians, and they couldn't bare the thought of leaving her alone in foster care after all she went through. No one could understand what she went through better than they could. Morgan tried to stay strong and professional but Garcia couldn't. She saw too much of the little girl in herself and it didn't take long for Reid to break protocol and bring her back to D.C. with them.

That was seven years ago.

Nobody knew how it all worked out, it just did. Morgan took one of his properties and made a home for her with room for them all. They didn't all stay there all the time, they still had their own places, but someone was always there with Sophia. Typically, Garcia watched her most of the time because she didn't travel as often but Morgan and Reid were very involved in her life when they were home. And as the time passed, they quickly became a family.

Sophia was now fifteen and starting her sophomore year in high school. Despite her past, she felt incredibly lucky to have the family she did. She lost two parents and ended up with three more. She always felt safe with Morgan around, Garcia was nurturing but fun and Reid could solve just about any problem she had.

"Sophia," Morgan knocked on her bedroom door before opening it slightly. "Come on, baby girl, time to get up."

"I'm tired." She whined as she sat up slowly.

"You'll be fine once you get up and get going." He said as he opened her blind and let the natural light spill into her dark room.

"Dad," She groaned. "Please let me sleep."

"No, Sophia. You have to go to school." He said. "Mama's making breakfast for us all."

"She only does that when you and Daddy are traveling for work." She said as she got out of bed.

"We still have time to drop you off at school." It was a tradition they had. On days when they were traveling they'd both bring her to school and it was a tradition Sophia had yet to let go of. She liked that she had an untraditional family and all the quirky traditions they developed. "Thirty minutes."

"Yeah, yeah." She mumbled and disappeared into the bathroom. She was never good at being on time. It always took her an extra ten minutes longer than she said she'd be. She had showered the night before, if she showered in the morning it would take her too long to get ready and she'd have to sacrifice sleep that she needed.

Sophia curled her hair, she had gotten pretty good at doing it quickly. She added soft waves because she felt the ringlets made her look like a little girl. She would wrap her hair around the iron instead of in it and then once she was done, she'd turn her head upside down and run her fingers through it to create messy waves with volume. Her hair was a rich brown and it made her green eyes really pop. She never wore much makeup beyond the bases of concealer, bronzer and mascara.

She changed into a pair of dark wash skinny jeans with black Birkenstock sandals and an loose fitting purple V-neck t-shirt and grabbed an oversized grey cardigan. Her style was pretty basic and typical for a teenage girl. She followed the trends and wore things that were comfortable.

"There's my girl, just in time." Garcia said as she placed the pancakes in the middle of the table.

"Our girl," Reid corrected her before smiling at Sophia. "Ready for school?"

"I'm too tired for school." She said. "Dad wouldn't let me sleep in."

"Maybe next time you will listen when I tell you to go to bed." Morgan said and fixed her with a look. "What does Mama let you do when we aren't here?"

Sophia grinned at Garcia. "You will never know."

"Nor will you ever find out." Garcia said as she sat down at the table. "Let me remind you that there is no work talk at family meals."

"Where are you going?" Sophia asked. She knew by now that asking them when they'd be back was out of the question; they never really knew, it was always different.

"New York City," Reid said. "We won't be far."

"So, behave." Morgan said and gave her his classic look.

"Don't I always?" She grinned at him and he couldn't help but smile back at her. "Daddy, will you read my History paper if I send it to you?"

"Sure honey," He said. "When is it due?"

"Not until Friday."

"What's it on?"

"Well, I haven't really decided yet."

"Sophia, it's Monday." Morgan scolded. "You better get started on that."

"I want a topic and an outline from you by tonight." Reid said. "You should have done that and research on the weekend."

"But Daddy, I've been busy with other classes." She whined.

"You can manage, Sophia." Reid said. "This is what happens when you leave things to the last minute."

"Just because you're a genius doesn't mean everyone is." She mumbled.

Morgan raised his eyebrows. "Sophia, you should be thankful that Daddy takes the time to help you with school work and create schedules for you so that you don't become overwhelmed with the workload."

"I know," She sighed. "I'm sorry, I'm just kind of stressed out."

Reid frowned but nodded. "I'll call you tonight and we can figure it out."

"Come on, you'll be late." Garcia said as she began to clear the table. "Be safe my loves, have a good day Sophia."

"Bye Mama," Sophia called as they left the house. Garcia was the first person Sophia started calling something other than her name. She had picked up on Morgan calling Garcia 'Mama' and she like it, so it stuck. It took her a little longer to figure out what she'd call Morgan and Reid but she finally settled on Dad for Morgan and Daddy for Reid. She wasn't sure why she did, but they let her chose and they seemed to like it.

Sophia was a bit quiet on the way to school. She always got like that when they were leaving. She knew firsthand how dangerous their job was. Both Morgan and Reid could sense her anxiety, they knew her better than herself, it was their job and they could read her like a book. As they pulled up in front of the school, Morgan put the car in park and turned to look at her in the back.

"We'll be fine, baby." Morgan reassured.

She smiled slightly. "I know but I'll still miss you."

"We'll miss you too." Reid said. "We love you."

"Very much." Morgan added.

Sophia leaned forward from the back seat and hugged them both, one at a time. They each kissed her head before letting her go. She jumped out of the black SUV and headed towards a group of her friends. They both watched her until they saw her smiling again and then Morgan drove away.

OOOOO

Morgan, Reid and the team were on scene of the case the second day when Morgan got a phone call from Garcia. He excused himself, walking a few feet away before answering the phone. "What do you got for me Garcia?"

"Oh, I have plenty for you Derek." Garcia snapped. "But this is not about the case."

Morgan frowned. "What happened?"

"I just got a very interesting phone call from the school." She said. "It would appear that our Sophia skipped class today. She just didn't come back after lunch for her classes."

"Why would she do that?"

"That's not all." She said. "When I called her to talk about it she told me to stop overreacting and then she hung up on me. I told her she better get here before I call you."

"Did she come?" Morgan raised his eyebrows. He was very aware that he was the firm parent in their situation.

"She did, but she's been giving me nothing but attitude. I don't know what has gotten into her, but Derek, you better talk to her."

Morgan sighed. "Where is she now?"

"She's in the conference room and she better be doing her homework."

"Put me through to her."

Garcia connected to the conference room, keeping Morgan on the line with her. "Sophia?"

"What?" Morgan raised his eyebrows, he was surprised at her snarky tone.

"Dad is on the line and wants to talk to you."

"You said you weren't going to call him if I came here!" She yelled. "If I knew you'd do it anyway I would have stayed with my friends and had some fun."

"You better check that attitude, Sophia." Morgan interrupted. She wasn't aware that he could hear her yet.

"But Dad, she's being unfair!" She whined. "She probably didn't even tell you the whole story. She always does that."

"I do not, Sophia." Garcia said. "Don't make me the bad guy here."

"Garcia, let me speak with her alone." Morgan said, trying to avoid a fight.

"Fine, but I expect an apology."

"You aren't getting one." Sophia said just before Garcia hung up.

"That's enough, Sophia." Morgan said. "Did you skip school?"

"Dad, it's not simple."

"Yes it is." He said. "Yes or no, Sophia."

She sighed. "Yeah, I did."

"Why?"

Sophia hesitated, she knew this conversation wasn't going to go her way. "I want to talk to Daddy."

"Too bad, you're talking to me right now."

"But you won't listen to me." She complained. "You always take Mama's side."

"I'm listening to you right now." He said. "So, you better start talking because I'm losing my patience."

"Okay, we have this class project for science that we're supposed to work on today because our teacher is away so we have a sub." She explained. "But Jessica has all our stuff and she was home sick today. So, Caitlin and I went to visit her at lunch to get the stuff but we didn't want to leave her out so we decided to work on the project instead of going to class."

"Without calling Mama?" He said. It was hard to profile her over the phone but he was pretty sure that wasn't the whole truth.

"I did call her!" She insisted. "The line was busy, it's always busy."

"Why did you miss both your classes?"

"We got caught up in it and we were late to last period but not by much!" She said. "We had to get a late slip but they knew we didn't show up to Science so they wouldn't let us go to last period until they talked to our parents."

"So, why did you hang up on Mama?"

"She called me when I was on my way back to school and flipped out. She wouldn't even let me explain and I didn't feel like being yelled at."

"You're grounded until we get home and can talk about this with you." He said. "And Sophia, I better never hear you talk to Mama like that again. Do you understand me?"

"Yes, Dad." She mumbled.

"I'll call you later, baby." He said, softer this time.

Morgan hung up and walked back over to the group. He was much better than Garcia at staying professional and separating his home life from his job. He waited until they all returned to the hotel room before telling Reid what happened. They had agreed to co-parent, but if it wasn't an emergency they didn't need to fill each other in right away.

"She's never been like that with any of us before." Reid frowned.

"Well, she wouldn't dare pull attitude like that with me." Morgan said.

"Something had to have happened." He said. "She said she was working on a science project?"

"With Caitlin and Jessica."

"Caitlin is her lab partner, but Jessica doesn't have Science with them." Reid said. "There's four in the group project, Caitlin is in the group but Jessica isn't. The other two group members are male."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," He nodded. "I read the course outline. Lab partners are the same sex, but the group project mixes one team of girls with one team of boys."

Morgan sighed and shook his head. "So, this is about a boy?"

"Maybe," Reid shrugged. "I'll call her."

"Yeah, you should do that." He nodded. "I'm going to the gym."

Reid waited until he left the room before calling Sophia. "Hi," She answered.

"Hi Sophia," Reid tried not to smile at how sad she sounded. "Do you want to tell me what happened today?"

She sighed. "I pretty sure you've already heard."

"I did, but I know that Jessica isn't in your science class." He nodded. "Why did you lie to Mama and Dad?"

"Because they'll get mad." She said.

"Where were you Sophia?"

She paused for a moment and when she spoke again, Reid could hear that she was crying as she sniffed. "Daddy?"

"Yes, sweetheart?"

"Do you ever get scared that you'll end up like your Mom?"

Reid closed his eyes for a moment and sat down on the bed. "Sometimes, yeah I think about it. Did you go to see Caitlin's Aunt? Is that where you were?" Caitlin's aunt was a psychologist and Caitlin went to her for her ADHD.

"I took the test." She said. "It said I was likely to develop bipolar disorder if I wasn't already showing symptoms."

"I would have taken you if you wanted to know." He said. "It's a scary thing, but it doesn't mean it will happen to you and I promise you that if I notice anything, I will talk to you about it. But you have to promise me that if you notice something different, you'll talk to me too. This isn't something you go through alone, Sophia."

"Okay." She said. "Can you tell Mama and Dad?"

"I'll tell you what, I'll tell Dad." He said. "But I think you should tell Mama because you weren't very nice to her today and this was not her fault. You need to apologize to her, Sophia."

"Yeah, okay." She sighed.

"I'll have Dad call you when he gets back from the gym."

"The gym?" She asked. "So, he's mad?"

"Well, he thought your skipping class might have something to do with a boy."

"And that's why I never bring boys around the house." She said. "Dad would probably kill them and then no boy would ever like me again."

"What boy likes you now?" Reid frowned. "Sophia, was that hypothetical?"

"Maybe, and maybe not." Sophia laughed.

**Please review and let me know what you think of the story line.**


	2. Chapter 2

"So, you never did tell me if you got in trouble for skipping?" Caitlin asked Sophia in Science class on Friday.

"Yeah, I kind of did, I guess." She said. "You know my Mom, she's not much for consequences. My Dads aren't home yet, but I told them everything."

"Sorry for dragging you along." She said. "I had an appointment and you wanted to talk to her, so I thought it would be a good time."

"It's not your fault." Sophia shook her head. "I wanted to go."

"Since you two bailed on class Monday, we are behind on the project." Liam, one of guys in their group, interrupted. "We need to meet up after school. We vote one of you two need to host and repay us with food."

Caitlin grinned and turned to Sophia. "My Mom has the night shift at the hospital tonight, can we go to your place?"

"Yeah, probably." She shrugged.

"Text me your address, we'll meet you there." Liam said as they walked away.

Caitlin went home with Sophia to an empty house that afternoon. They looked around for snacks and other food they could make before the guys got there. They put some finger foods in the oven; pizza bites, mozzarella sticks, egg rolls, and they took out a vegetable tray from the fridge with ranch dip.

"Your house always has the best food." Caitlin said. "There's so much healthy food but then you have the best snacks."

"I know, it's funny." She grinned. "They always want to be super healthy but they all have their junk food cravings, so we end up with a fridge full of healthy food and meals and a pantry and freezer full of junk food."

"Best of both worlds." She grinned as the doorbell rang.

Sophia opened the door to let Liam and Simon in, she had a crush a Liam, but she wouldn't admit that just yet. "Wow," Liam said as he walked inside.

It was a two storey, older house that Morgan has completely renovated. It wasn't huge, but it was a decent size. The main floor had a large open front foyer with a staircase off to the side that had a balcony hallway at the top. The wall going up the stairs was filled with photos of Sophia and her family. There was an office and a small bathroom to the left. The living room, with a fireplace and flat screen above it and leather couches, was to the right. There was a dining room with a large table, because the house could get crowded around the holidays, after the living room and a big kitchen with an island and breakfast nook was at the back of the house. The upstairs had four bedrooms, one for each of them, and two bathrooms. The basement had a large rec room, a storage room and a laundry room.

"Your house is sweet." Liam said as he looked around and followed Sophia down the hallway to the kitchen. "What do your parents do?"

"FBI." Caitlin grinned as Sophia shot her a look.

"Seriously?" Simon said. "What do they do?"

"Tech Analyst and Behavioural Analysis." Sophia answered as she ate a carrot.

Not everyone knew about her home life or her back story. She rarely told anyone about her biological parents or the first eight years of her life. She usually just said she was adopted, which was the truth. She wasn't ashamed, it was just a long story and usually she didn't like to get into it.

"What does that mean?" Liam frowned.

"Her Mom is a computer hacker and her Dads profile serial killers." Caitlin answered and Sophia laughed, she always had a way of getting straight to the point.

"Really?" Simon asked.

"That's so cool." Liam added.

"Trying lying to her Dads, seriously," Caitlin said. "I dare you."

"Dads?" Simon questioned.

"I have two Dads, and no, they aren't gay." Sophia answered. "None of my parents are together."

"So, it's just three friends raising a kid together?" Liam frowned.

"Yeah, pretty much." She nodded, wanting to leave it at that. "And don't try lying to them, it never ends well."

"They can tell you more about yourself, than even you'd know." Caitlin said. "It's really cool, but so creepy sometimes."

"That must suck." Liam said. "You'd never get away with anything."

"Well, my Mom isn't a profiler." Sophia said. "And my Dads travel a lot for work."

They carried the food into the living room and began pulling out their books and supplies. Sophia turned the radio on, playing music lowly in the background. "So, do they ever tell you about their cases?" Simon asked.

"No, not really." Sophia shook her head. "I only know if it was really bad, like it involved kids or something, because they race home right after instead of going to the office to finish the paperwork."

"Too bad your Dad isn't home, Sophia." Caitlin said. "He could help us with this project from hell. He's a genius, literally."

"He won't do it for us." Sophia grinned. "Caitlin always tries to get him to tell her the answers."

"He figured me out pretty fast." She nodded. "He only helps if we really need it, and we really need it this time."

"My parents are like that too." Simon said. "They're both University professors in Math and they won't help until I've put some serious effort into figuring it out for myself. But, they always have to correct it."

Sophia laughed. "Sounds exactly like my Dad."

They began working on the project, becoming consumed in it. It was a really hard project that involved a lot of research and planning. They had a report to do, with lab results, and they had to physically build something to demonstrate their theory. They were working on the report and the rest of the research. They had already done the lab research and results in class during the week. They figured they would leave the building to the end and for another day.

Sophia looked up when she noticed a car pulling into the driveway. It was Garcia's car, and to Sophia's disappointment, she was alone. She walked into the house with a bag of groceries and smiled at the four teenagers. "Hard at work?"

"More like getting killed by the work." Caitlin said. "Where is Dr. Reid when you need him?"

Garcia laughed. "They're not far behind me. They will be here for dinner. You're all welcome to stay."

"What are we having?" Sophia asked.

"Lasagna and Caesar salad." She said.

"Oh, I'm definitely staying." Caitlin said. "You make a mean lasagna."

"You were staying anyway." Sophia shook her head. Caitlin always stayed for dinner when he Mom worked nights. "Do you guys want to stay? We can get my Dad to look at what we have so far after dinner."

"Yeah, sure." Liam nodded.

"I have to ask my parents, but I'm sure it's fine." Simon shrugged.

"Sophia," Garcia came into the room. "Can you clean up and take your friends downstairs before your Dads get home?"

"Yeah, we should take a break anyway." Sophia said. "I'll meet you down there."

"I'll set up the pool table." Caitlin said as she led them downstairs.

The rec room was similar to a game room. It had a bar, a pool table, air hockey table, and a large flat screen T.V. with surround sound. She had a Wii and other video games and they had a big collection of movies. Sophia usually brought her friends downstairs to hang out because it had a lot of space and so many things to do and it gave them some privacy.

Sophia brought the dishes into the kitchen and began putting them into the dishwasher as Garcia started dinner. "Are you guys even hungry after all that food?"

"Yeah, kind of." She shrugged. "We made that like three hours ago when we got home from school."

"Oh, to have the metabolism of a teenager again."

Sophia grinned. "You look great, Mama."

"Brownie points for you." She smiled. "How much time did you actually spend doing your science project today?"

"Most of it." She said. "I want Daddy to look at it before we start building it, though."

Sophia heard the door open and immediately stopped what she was doing. She always got really excited when they came home and wanted to greet them, just like a little kid. Morgan and Reid didn't mind and they hoped it was something she wouldn't grow out of. They really missed her when they were away and they liked the little reunions they would have.

"Hi, baby girl." Morgan said as she jumped into his arms. He hugged her tightly before putting her down. "Where's Mama?"

"In the kitchen." She said as she hugged Reid. He dropped a kiss to her head as they separated. "I have friends over."

"I can see that." Morgan said as he looked around at the extra shoes and jackets.

"We're working on the science project." Sophia added. "Mama invited them to stay for dinner. She's making lasagna."

"My favourite." Morgan said, walking towards the kitchen.

Sophia turned back to Reid and he smiled. "What do you need?"

"Can you look at what we did so far for the project?" She asked. "We don't want to build something if we are way off track."

"How much work have you done?"

"A lot." She gathered up the papers that were on the coffee table. "These are our lab results and the lab report. This is all our research for the paper and this is the outline for the model we want to build. We just want to be sure the Math is right and that this is the best choice for the model to build."

Reid nodded as he looked it over. "It looks good, Sophia. I think you should try building the model." He put the papers down and looked at his daughter. "I'll help you if you get stuck but you know my rules."

"I'm not asking you to do it for me." She insisted. "We just want to make sure we don't mess it up. Please Daddy, will you help?"

Reid sighed. "I'll observe you guys when you're building it."

Sophia grinned, it was hard for him to say no to her. She headed into the kitchen to find Morgan and Garcia catching up. "Dad?"

Morgan turned his head to look over his shoulder. "Yeah, baby?"

"Can you help us build our science fair project tomorrow?" She asked. "We need to use tools."

"And you know what happened the last time." Caitlin interrupted, coming up from downstairs.

Morgan smirked. "You're definitely not allowed to use my tools after last time. What do you need?"

"We're building rockets so we need to make them and the stands to launch them from." Caitlin said excitedly. "We got one of the coolest projects in the class, but also one of the hardest."

"A project that cool and you still skipped class?" Morgan eyed her. He knew Caitlin didn't have the best home life, her Mom was great, but she was a single parent and she struggled. Morgan and the others stepped in as often as they could.

"Dad, don't blame her." Sophia said.

"Yeah, sorry for dragging Sophia with me."

"Sophia has a mind of her own." Morgan said. He would never blame someone else for his daughter's actions or choices. "I don't want either one of you skipping class and if you do it again, you'll answer to me. You got it?"

"Got it." She nodded.

"Good." He said.

"I'm guessing you didn't come up here to get lectured." Garcia smiled.

"Uh, no, not exactly.." Caitlin grinned. "I was coming to get Sophia, we have the pool table set up."

"Can we eat downstairs?" Sophia asked, looking at Garcia.

"Sure," She had a feeling her daughter liked one of those boys, she didn't know which one but she knew Morgan would scare them both.

"Hey now," Morgan interrupted. "I haven't seen my baby girl all week. I'd like to have dinner with her."

"Derek," Garcia shook her head. "Let the teenagers eat downstairs. We have some things to talk about anyway."

Sophia took that as her clue to leave the room with Caitlin. Garcia called them back upstairs a little bit later when dinner was ready to get their plates. Sophia was a bit nervous when the guys came up and Morgan seemed to stare them down.

"I'm Agent Morgan, Sophia's Dad." He said, offering his hand. "This is Dr. Reid, and you've met Penelope."

The boys nodded and introduced themselves. They tried to keep calm but Morgan was a big guy and he was intimidating. They quickly got their food before disappearing back downstairs. They watched a movie before heading home shortly after it was finished. They agreed to come back over tomorrow to start building the model.

Garcia and Morgan were getting ready to watch a movie in the living room. She was making popcorn and he was setting the movie up when Sophia walked over to him, wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her head in his chest. She had missed him.

"How's my girl doing?" Morgan smiled, returning the embrace.

"I'm tired." She said, looking up at him. "Are you still mad at me?"

Morgan frowned at her. "What do I always tell you, Sophia?"

"That you're never mad at me, just unhappy with the thing I did or choice I made."

"Come here," He led her over to the couch and sat down with her. "I understand that you were worried and you wanted to talk to someone about it, and I even understand why that someone wasn't me. But baby, we all care about you and we need to know if something is wrong. We don't keep secrets in this family. I know you told Daddy, but you did it after and that's not how we do things in this house."

"I didn't want you guys to think I was crazy."

"Baby, we would never think that and we'd never judge you." He said. "You have to be honest with us."

"I know." She nodded. "But this was hard to talk about."

"I get that. It's a scary thing." He said. "But just because you're scared doesn't mean we can't help you. That's what we are here for and we will always be on your side. I love you, baby girl."

"I love you too." Sophia smiled as she leaned against him and he wrapped his arms around her. "I missed you."

"I missed you too." He said as Garcia came back into the room. "And I missed your Mama and her home cooking."

Garcia smirked. "Sophia, are you joining us for movie night?"

"What are you watching?"

"Star Wars." She said.

"Oh God, no." Sophia shook her head. "You've seen that movie like a hundred times."

"And you have yet to sit through it once." Garcia noted. "One day we will succeed in getting you to watch it all the way through."

"And tonight will not be that day." She said. "Where's Daddy?"

"He's upstairs, working." Morgan said. "But he does want to talk to you."

"Remind me to not mess up when you aren't all home." Sophia sighed as she got up. "Three separate lectures about the same thing sucks."

"Night baby," Morgan said, kissing her head.

"Night Dad, Night Mama."

Sophia headed to her room and changed into comfy clothes of yoga pants and a long sleeve before heading to Reid's room. The door to his room was opened and he was sitting at his desk with a frown on his face. "Daddy?" She interrupted and he looked up.

"Yeah, sweetheart, what is it?" He said.

"Can you read to me?"

"Sure," Reid smiled and got up, grabbing a book from one of the shelves before sitting on his bed. "But before we start, we need to discuss some things."

"Ugh, Daddy." Sophia groaned. "I messed up, but I know. I won't skip class, or hide things from you guys, or give you attitude instead of telling you I'm upset. I got it."

"That's not what I want to talk about, Sophia." He said. "Why didn't you come to me with this?"

"Because it's embarrassing." She said. "And as soon as I told you about it, it would become too real."

"Sophia," Reid said. "I know it's easy to deny even the possibility of it. But I want you to know that I've been there before, I know how scary it is and how hard it is, and I can help you. All you have to do is talk to me."

She nodded. "I know."

Sophia cuddled up next to him and leaned back into his chest as he put an arm around her and held the book in front of them and began to read. It was something he had been doing since she first came to live with them. At first it was a way to get her to go to sleep and then it became a comforting mechanism. It was also a way for them to bond, something that was just theirs, and it reminded Reid of how his mother used to read to him.

After a few chapters he paused for a moment, listening to her breathing. "Do you want to go to bed?"

"No, I'm awake." She said softly.

"Barely," He grinned, kissing her head. "I'll finish this chapter and then you need to go to bed."

**A/N: If you want me to continue with this story, you have to review. I continue writing as long as I know that people are reading and waiting for new chapters. If I don't get a lot of response/reviews, I may discontinue the story, so please review. **


	3. Chapter 3

"Are you going to be disappointed if your Dads can't make it back in time for the science fair?" Garcia asked as she drove Sophia to school.

She shrugged. "All part of the job, right?"

"So, that's a yes." Garcia pulled up in front of the school. "They're going to try their best."

"Yeah, I know." Sophia sighed. "I've heard it all before."

"Sophia," She said, stopping her from leaving the car. "You know they'd be there if they could."

"But their job always comes first." Sophia got out of the car and headed into the school, leaving Garcia to feel empathetic towards her situation.

Later that afternoon Sophia and Caitlin set up their booth at the science fair as the guys set up the demonstration for the rockets outside. They had to create a poster explaining their project, display their lab results and then show the demonstration.

"Is your Mom coming?" Sophia asked.

"No," Caitlin shook her head. "She's working, like always."

Sophia sighed. "I know the feeling."

"Your parents aren't coming?" Caitlin frowned. "Not even your Mom?"

"She might be here," Sophia shrugged. "It depends on whether or not the case is over."

"But your Dads aren't going to make it back?"

"I doubt it." Sophia said. "The case is local, but it's not like they can leave for some high school science fair."

"And it's not like my Mom can lose a shift." She sighed. "We need the money."

"Well, at least we have each other."

Caitlin grinned. "You've never let me down."

They finished setting up and started preparing when Sophia got a phone call from Morgan. "Hey baby girl."

"Hi Dad." She said. "Where are you?"

"We're still working." He said. "Daddy and I can't get away, but Mama will be there."

"Okay." She said, trying to keep the disappointment out of her voice.

"Sophia, we're sorry. We'd be there if we could." He said. "We'll make it up to you."

It was another one of their traditions. If they missed something because of work, they would spend some one on one time with her, doing whatever she wanted, to make up for it. It was a way for them to spend time together, to bond, and to make sure she knew she was loved and very much wanted.

"You always do." That time her voice cracked.

Garcia did show up and that made Sophia happy, she was always over compensating for her Dads. She stayed for the presentation, made by Sophia and Caitlin, and the demonstration, made by Liam and Simon. But she got called away before the results.

"Sophia, I'm sorry, but I have to get back to the office." She explained.

"It's okay, Mama." She said, even though it wasn't.

"Your Dads would be so proud of you." She said. "I know I am."

Sophia smiled and watched her disappear. When they won first prize, she was excited, until she realized that she had no family there to share it with. Caitlin and Sophia were alone, and by the look of it, they were the only students without parents there. They both decided not to tell their parents, they pretended they didn't care, but they both did, very much.

OOOOO

Reid rushed into the house early the next morning, calling out for his daughter. "Sophia?" He looked in the living room before turning towards the staircase. "Sophia?"

"Yeah?" She answered from the kitchen before she appeared in the hallway. "Daddy, I'm in the kitchen."

"Come here," He said as he made his way towards her. Relief washed over him as he hugged her tightly and he let out an audible sigh.

Sophia smiled and looked up at him. "Kids?"

"Kids." He confirmed with a nod as they separated. Some cases hit a little too close to home. "Where's Mama?"

"She already left for work." She said. "Where's Dad?"

"He's still at the office." He said. "How did the science fair go?"

"Fine." She turned back to continue making muffins. She had gotten up early because she couldn't sleep well and she wanted something homemade for them to come home to.

Reid frowned; she always baked when she was upset. "Are you upset that we didn't make it?"

"No, I understand." She answered.

"Just because you understand doesn't mean it didn't bother you."

"I'm not upset." She said shortly.

"Sophia, can you look at me."

She sighed and turned around. "Daddy, I'm fine."

"You're entire demeanor changed when I mentioned the science fair. You're acting annoyed but you're avoiding eye contact with me which tells me that you're deflecting your feelings. You want me to think you're angry. You stated that you're fine but in actuality, you're not, and you're not angry, you're hurt."

"Don't profile me." She snapped.

Reid's frown deepened and he put his hands on his hips. "Don't give me a reason to have to." He said with a shrug. "Talk to me."

"Every other kid had their parents there. You knew it was important to me and you had a local case but you wouldn't take fifteen minutes and come and see my presentation. So yeah, I'm upset that you weren't there." She said and began walking out of the kitchen.

"No, you don't get to walk away, Sophia." Reid said, stepping in front of her. "Tell me why it bothered you so much this time."

"Sometimes it feels like you care more about your job than you do about me."

"Sophia," Reid said gently. "That's not true."

"But that's what it feel likes. Like your job is more important than me and maybe it is. You save people, you saved me." She said. "It's just not fair that your work always has to come first."

Reid put his hands on her shoulders and leaned down so they could see eye to eye. "Nothing, and no one, is more important to me than you. I want to be there, all the time, and for every little thing, but with my job it's just not possible. But it doesn't mean that my job comes before you." 

"Daddy, I know." She said softly. "I just wanted you to be there."

"I wanted to be there too." He said, standing back to his full height. "Come on, I'll take you to school."

"Can I stay home?" She asked. "I don't feel well."

Reid frowned, she was rarely sick. "What's wrong?"

"I'm tired. I didn't sleep well last night." She said. "And my throat hurts. It feels like I have strep."

He continued to frown as he felt her glands and forehead. "You're warm and you're glands are swollen. I'm going to call your Doctor and see if she can see you today."

"Daddy, will you stay home with me?"

"Sure, sweetheart." He said. "I could use the day off."

"Can we have a Doctor Who marathon?"

Reid smiled. "We can do that." He nodded towards the muffin mix. "Finish this while I make some phone calls."

Reid called the school first to let them know that Sophia wouldn't be there today before calling the Doctor. He was able to get her an appointment in about an hour with the nurse practitioner. He then called Morgan and Garcia to let them know what was going on.

"Garcia, hey, it's Reid." He said.

"Are you home yet?"

"Yeah, and Sophia is sick."

"Are you sure she's sick?" She asked. "You know how she gets when you guys have cases back to back."

"I know she wants to spend time with me, but I think she has strep throat." He said. "I'm going to take her to the Doctor."

"Okay, call me when you get back from the Doctor."

"Will do." He hung up and called Morgan.

"Reid, I'm buried in paperwork." He answered, figuring he knew what he was being called about. "I won't be home before she has to go to school but tell her I will pick her up."

"She's not going to school, she's sick, and I'm staying home with her." He said. "Can you get along without me today?"

"Yeah, Hotch sent everyone home. We're just getting caught up on paperwork." He said. "What's wrong with Sophia?"

"She says her throat is sore and she's tired. Her glands are swollen and she has a fever so I think it might be strep throat again." He explained. "I'm bringing her to the Doctor soon."

"What about the science fair, what am I dealing with?" Morgan knew she wasn't happy when he called to tell her they couldn't make it. She tried to hide it, but he didn't need to see her face, he heard it in her voice.

"She's upset, but I talked to her." He said. "She said sometimes it feels like our job is more important than her."

Morgan sighed. "Can you put her on?"

"Yeah," Reid walked back into the kitchen and handed Sophia his cell. "It's Dad."

"Hi Dad,"

"Hey baby," He said. "I heard you're sick?"

"My throat hurts." She said. "Are you coming home?"

"I'll be home for dinner." He said. "Sophia, about the science fair,"

"It's okay, Dad." She interrupted.

"No, it's not." He said. "I don't want you to get used to us not being there. It's not okay that we missed something important to you. I'm sorry I wasn't there."

"It goes with the job, and if you didn't do your job, a lot of people wouldn't be here." She said. "Me included."

Morgan smiled. "Feel better, baby girl."

"Bye Dad."

Reid took her to the Doctor, it was strep throat, just like he thought. He dropped her back off at home before going to pick up the prescription. It was going to take a while and he didn't want to make her wait. He also had to pick up some groceries.

Sophia wasn't the best sick person, mainly because she was rarely sick. When she did get sick, she would complain heavily. He wanted to make sure he was prepared for that. As he waited for the prescription he picked up the few things Sophia would eat when she was sick, chicken soup, ginger ale, crackers and apple sauce.

When he got home he found Sophia on the couch, wrapped up in the comforter from her bed and Doctor Who playing on the TV. He gave her the prescription before putting the food away and joining her. He knew that she was mainly tired, it was probably why she got sick.

"What season did we leave off at?" She asked as he sat down with her, pulling her into his arms and covering them both with the blanket.

"We just started season four." He said, pressing play.

It didn't take long for Sophia to fall asleep and Reid wasn't far behind her. They both slept the rest of the morning and were still asleep when Morgan came home early that afternoon. He grinned when he saw them and noticed Doctor Who was playing, he'd never understand why they liked that show, he could never get into it. Garcia was right behind him and very quietly took a photo of them before sneaking off into the kitchen with Morgan.

"Should we wake them up?" Garcia asked. "It doesn't look like they've eaten lunch."

"I think they both need the sleep." Morgan said. "I could use a nap too."

"Well, you go do that and I'll make some food for all of us." She said with a grin. "We can have dinner at three thirty in the afternoon like old people."

Morgan smirked. "I'll take that offer."


	4. Chapter 4

"Where is your Dad?" Caitlin groaned, dropping her head onto the kitchen table that was covered in math books and notes.

"He's still at work." Sophia sighed as she glanced at the clock on the oven. It was already six and their test was tomorrow morning. None of her parents had made it home yet; that rarely happened. Whatever case they were working must be close to being solved for them all not to take a break for the night.

"We're screwed." Caitlin lifted her head. "What's the use of having a parent with a P.h.D. in Math if he's never home to help you?"

Sophia grinned, sometimes Caitlin was very dramatic. "He'll be here."

"Sophia, we're going to fail." She said. "My Mom is working all night and the only other person that can understand this well enough to teach us, isn't here." Sophia was about to respond when she was interrupted by a text message. "Is that Liam again?"

"Yeah, I told him we're dying trying to figure this out." She smiled and Caitlin rolled her eyes. "He said he can help."

"He's the reason we didn't study all week." Caitlin said. "And I know this is super weird coming from me, but we need to study."

"We can't study if we don't know what we're doing." She said. "He said he can explain it. He's studying with Simon right now."

"Tell him we'll skype them." Caitlin said. "If they come over here, you two are just going to stare at each other and act all awkward. And Simon and I will sit here in disgust like we always do. But hey, Simon is the smart one, so as long as he comes to explain it to me, what do I care?"

"Good, because they're coming." She smiled. "Let's make food."

"Well, why not? You're parents obviously aren't coming home to feed us." Caitlin said as she opened the fridge. "Are we eating healthy or no?"

"Maybe, there's chicken in here. We could put it in salad or make broccoli and rice to go with it." Sophia joined her, staring into the fridge. "Or we have ground beef, we could make tacos?"

"Definitely tacos." Caitlin nodded. "Who needs to eat healthy?"

"We can make a salad to go with it and pretend to be healthy."

"I like the way you think." Caitlin grinned as the doorbell rang. "I'll start the food."

"I'll get the door."

Sophia walked down the hall and opened the door for Liam and Simon. "We brought Chinese."

"My favourite." Sophia grinned. "Hey Cait, never mind, they brought food."

"Chinese, Sophia's favourite." Caitlin said. "Big surprise."

"We brought a movie; The Prisoners." Simon said, holding up the movie. "Hope you like scary ones."

"We have to study." Sophia reminded.

"We will, it won't take long." Liam said. "Simon's parents broke it down for us, there's nothing to it."

"Yeah, here." Simon handed them the notes. "Explanations and examples."

"Awesome," Caitlin said as she looked it over with Sophia. "Okay, go over this with us and then we'll eat and watch the movie."

"Deal." Liam nodded, grinning at Sophia.

Sophia sat on the couch with Caitlin on one side and Liam on the other. She didn't like scary movies at all, mostly because she knew what was out there, and this movie played on her biggest fear; being taken again. She sat through most of it, but towards the end it got a little too much for her and she got up and left the room.

Liam frowned and paused the movie. "Is she okay?"

"Uhm," Caitlin watched Sophia leave. "I'll be right back."

Sophia was pacing in the kitchen, trying to calm down when Caitlin walked in. "I'm fine."

"You're having a flashback aren't you?" She asked.

"Yeah, kind of." She said.

"Are you okay?" Liam and Simon came into the kitchen.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Sophia faked a smile. "Scary movies kind of freak me out sometimes."

"Oh, right, FBI parents." Simon nodded. "I'm sure you've overheard their cases."

"I never even thought about it." Liam said, and he sounded genuinely concerned.

"It's okay," Sophia brushed it off. "It's really no big deal."

"Well, my Mom is outside to pick us up." Simon said. "See you at school tomorrow."

"See yeah later." Caitlin said.

Liam hesitated, looking at Sophia and she smiled again. "I'm fine, really."

"Alright," He nodded, flashing his famous grin. "See you tomorrow."

He lingered for a moment before following Simon down the hall and out the door. The minute they left, Sophia went back to trying to calm her nerves. She had gotten good at faking that she was okay over the years and masking her fear and pain. But those closest to her, like Caitlin, saw right through it.

"Just breathe," Caitlin soothed, rubbing her arm. "I'm going to clean up."

Caitlin gathered all the food containers from the living room and straightened it up. She threw out the garbage and put the dishes in the dishwasher before she started to clean up the kitchen too. Sophia felt bad she wasn't helping, but her hands were shaking.

They heard the door open and Sophia looked down the hallway, startled and nervous, until she realized who it was. Morgan saw her at the end of the hall and he could tell something wasn't right. Caitlin was there, a worried look in her eye as she watched Sophia with concern.

Morgan frowned as he got to her. "What's wrong, baby?"

Sophia shrugged, shaking her head with arms crossed. "We watched a movie." Caitlin answered. "It was about two kids that got kidnapped."

"Why would you watch that?" He asked, wrapping an arm around her.

"Liam and Simon brought it over." Caitlin continued to answer for her friend. "They said it was a scary movie but we didn't know it was about that."

Morgan turned when he saw a car pull into the driveway. "Your Aunt is here." He said to Caitlin. "You could have stayed."

"You know my Mom," She said as she grabbed her stuff. "She doesn't want to burden you, so she just burdens our family."

"You're not a burden, Caitlin." Morgan said as the girls hugged goodbye. "You're pretty important in this house."

"I know, it's why I always come back." She smiled. "See you tomorrow."

Morgan turned to Sophia once Caitlin was gone. He ran a hand down the back of her head and cupped her chin, wiping away a few tears. "I'll never let anyone hurt you." He reminded.

"I know, Dad." She said. "But sometimes I still get scared."

"That's natural. Sophia, you went through a lot. That doesn't just go away." He said. "Some things stay with you, but I'm always going to protect you."

"Can I stay in your room tonight?"

Morgan smiled and kissed her head. "Sure, baby girl."

OOOOO

"I can't believe she graded the tests that fast." Sophia said as they left Math class Thursday morning. "Two days, that has to be a record."

"No, she just wanted to make sure we got them back and signed before the weekend started." Caitlin said. "I swear teachers plan this stuff, they want to ruin our weekends."

"My Dad is going to kill me." Sophia sighed.

"Hey," Liam interrupted, catching up to them. "So, you're coming to my party tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah, probably." Sophia glanced at Caitlin.

"We'll be there." Caitlin added.

"Awesome," Liam grinned at Sophia, causing her to blush as she smiled back.

"You have to make sure you don't get grounded because of the test this weekend." Caitlin said once they walked away.

"And how am I supposed to do that?" Sophia asked. "We have to get them signed by tomorrow."

"Forge it or figure it out." Caitlin said. "We have to go to that party. He invited you personally, this is your in."

"He invited both of us." She corrected. "He invited everyone."

"He was looking at you the whole time, he texts you non-stop and he always finds a reason to hang out." She said. "He likes you."

Sophia rolled her eyes. She didn't want to get her hopes up. "You don't know that."

"I'm pretty sure I do." Caitlin grinned. "And I know you like him."

"So do a lot of other girls." Sophia said. "He's the quarterback and the most popular guy in our grade."

"And he's single." She said. "And he was looking at you.

OOOOO

"Mama," Sophia called from upstairs.

"Kitchen, Sophia." She called back. Garcia didn't like them yelling from room to room or floor to floor. She would only answer where she was and nothing else. It became a family rule for them all.

"I need you to sign a test." She said. "And you can't get mad."

"That sounds promising." Garcia nodded.

"Well, I had some problems with this unit in Math." She explained, as she handed her the test. "I thought I understood it, but apparently not."

"Understatement," Garcia said with raised eyebrows as she looked at the test. "When does this test need to be returned?"

"Today," She answered.

"So, you got it back last night and hoped your Dads would get a case before it had to be signed?" Garcia knew her daughter really well. Anytime she had something she didn't want her Dads to know, she would wait until the last second and try to only tell Garcia about it with hopes she wouldn't tell Morgan or Reid.

"Maybe." Sophia drew the word out. "You know how they get. Dad will get mad and Daddy will hate me because I'm not as smart as him."

"Sophia, you know that's not true." She said as she signed it. "You can do better than this."

"I know. But it's a really hard unit. Caitlin didn't do well either." She said. "Do we have to tell them?"

Garcia handed her back the test. "We don't keep secrets in this family."

Sophia sighed; sometimes she hated that line. "Fine, but I'm telling them over text message."

"I think you should call them." She grinned. "Let's go, we have to pick Caitlin up."

Sophia grabbed her bag and headed to the car. They always picked Caitlin up when her Mom was working. Sometimes Sophia felt bad that she had three parents and Caitlin only had one, which is why Caitlin spent so much time at their house.

"Hey," Caitlin said as she climbed into the car.

"Hey," Sophia turned, handing her a drink and a bag. "Strawberry smoothie and a sesame seed bagel with cream cheese."

"Oh, you know me so well." She grinned. "Thanks."

"Caitlin, how did you do on your Math test?" Garcia asked.

Caitlin glanced at Sophia briefly. "Not great."

"Sophia is going to talk to her Dad tonight and he will help her when he comes home." She said. "Do you want him to help you too?"

"Yeah, sure." Caitlin nodded. "My Mom doesn't have time."

"Okay, bye Mama." Sophia said as they pulled up in front of the school.

"Tell your Dads Sophia." Garcia reminded. "Have a good day, girls."

OOOOO

"Alright, let me know when you find out." Morgan said.

"Will do," Garcia said. "Hey, did Sophia call you?"

"No," She could hear him frown. "Why?"

"She has something to tell you." She said. "I told her to call you."

"What happened?"

"I want her to tell you, Derek." She said.

"Should I be worried?" He asked.

"No, she's fine." She said. "It's more about not keeping things from us. I don't want her to play one parent against the others to get what she wants."

"Every kid does that." Morgan smirked as he got a text message. "She just texted me."

"What does it say?"

"Hey Dad, don't be mad but I didn't do well on my math test." He said. "How bad was it?"

"She got a C. She said it was a hard unit." Garcia said. "But she got the test back yesterday and waited until this morning, after you and Reid left, before she told me. And she only told me because a parent had to sign it."

"She knows better than that." Morgan sighed. "I'm going to call her."

"I think you should let Reid talk to her about this one." Garcia said. "She could have asked him for help but for some reason she didn't. And she said she didn't want to tell him because he'd hate her since she's not as smart as him."

"No one is as smart as him." Morgan frowned. "I'll get him to call her."

Morgan hung up and went to find Reid. He was in a conference at the police station working on the timeline of their unsub. He barely looked up when Morgan walked in. "Did Garcia get you the records?"

"No, she's still working on it." He said. "Did you get a message from Sophia?"

"Uh, no." He frowned and pulled his phone out of his pocket to check it. "Why, what's up?"

"She got a C on her Math test." He said. "She had the test all night but waited until we left to show Garcia. She said she didn't want you to hate her for not being as smart as you."

Reid frowned. "I would never hate her, for anything. I don't expect her to get perfect grades either."

"She knows that." Morgan said. "But something is going on and you need to talk to her about it."

"Yeah," He nodded. "I'm going to pick her up from school."

Reid took the SUV and went to the school. One of them usually picked her up, and they would text her to let her know which one was coming. Sophia came out of the school rather quickly at the end of the day, said goodbye to Caitlin and headed to the black SUV.

"Hi Daddy," She said as she climbed into the SUV. "Are you done work?"

"No, just taking a break." He said. "How was school?"

She shrugged. "It was okay."

"Yeah," He glanced at her as he drove. "How was Math class?"

Sophia made a face; she knew she was caught. "Mama told you?"

"No, Dad did." He said. "But you should have told me, better yet, you should have told me you were having trouble."

"I thought I had it figured out." She said.

"Sophia, I have a P.h.D. in Math." He said. "Why didn't you ask me to make sure you were on track?"

"Because you were on a case and I didn't want to bother you." She explained. "I wanted to figure it out on my own."

"But you don't have to and you've never had a problem asking me for help before." He said as he pulled into the driveway and turned to her. "I'm not upset about the grade, it happens, people slip up and they struggle."

"You don't." She mumbled.

"Sweetheart, you can't compare yourself to me, or to anyone else." He said gently. "If you need help, I'm not going to think any less of you for asking for it."

"Okay, I need help." She said. "And so does Caitlin."

Reid smiled and nodded. "I can help you both." He paused. "And Sophia, I could never hate you, I love you too much."

Sophia smiled and reached across the car to hug him. "I love you too."

**Review!**

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	5. Chapter 5

Sophia came downstairs that morning to a quiet house. She frowned as she walked into the kitchen and only saw Reid at the table with his breakfast. He was drinking coffee and reading a book but he looked up when she walked in.

"Where are Mama and Dad?" It was unusual for Garcia not to be there in the morning.

"They went in early, we have a new case, but it's local." He said as he continued to read.

"Oh," She nodded. "So, am I in trouble for the test?"

Reid looked at her and stopped reading this time. "No, as long as you don't make a habit of grades like that."

"I know, I know, B's or better." It was something they all agreed on and Sophia thought it was pretty fair. She was smart, she knew that and they knew that, and Reid could help her so she really had no excuse for not doing well in school.

"Why?" He looked at her, studying her as he frowned. "Did you do something else we should know about?"

Sophia grinned and looked over at him. "No," She said. "I just wanted to ask you all something and I wanted to do it only once."

"What is it?"

"Before I ask, I want you to have an open mind." She said as she sat down at the table to eat. "And promise that you'll make sure Dad doesn't jump right to no."

"Alright, I promise, now out with it, Sophia." He said. "Come on, spill."

"Liam, you remember Liam?" He nodded. "He's having a party tonight and he invited Caitlin and I, and we want to go."

Reid sighed. "So, he's the boy you like?"

"What?" She said, blushing immediately. "I never said that."

"You didn't have to, sweetheart." He grinned.

"Damn," She mumbled. "What gave me away?"

"A few things, mainly you didn't ask if you could go to a party, you made a point of saying its Liam's party." He said. "And yes, you can go, but one of us will drive you and pick you up."

"You're the best." She grinned at him.

OOOOO

Sophia and Caitlin headed into the FBI building after school. She didn't visit her parents at work very often, mostly because there were a lot of rules to follow when outsiders visited. They had to be taken up to the BAU by an escort and wait until someone came to get them. They couldn't go anywhere alone and they couldn't fool around, which was hard for two fifteen year old girls.

"Hey," JJ smiled when the elevator opened. "I didn't know you were coming by."

"The adults abandoned us." Caitlin said. "They were supposed to pick us up at school."

"I forgot my key." Sophia answered. "And you guys are too busy to leave."

"So here we are." Caitlin finished.

JJ smirked, she liked Caitlin. "Come on, you can wait in my office."

They followed her and noticed that they didn't see anyone else from the team besides JJ, although Sophia was pretty sure Garcia was in her office. "Where is everyone?"

"They're working a local case so they aren't far." No one would ever give them any specifics. "Do you want anything? Snack, drinks?"

"I know where the stash is." Caitlin said and gave Sophia a look before walking away.

JJ frowned. "That was subtle."

"Yeah," Sophia laughed before turning serious. "It's about a boy."

JJ looked at her with surprise and sat down. "Spill it."

"Okay, he's name is Liam and he's having a party tonight and Caitlin seems to think it's a big deal." She said. "Like this is supposed to be our opportunity to get together. But it's a party, it's not like he asked me out on a date just the two of us."

"No, but parties create a different environment." JJ explained. "What's he like? Have you spent time together before?"

"Yeah, he was in my group for the science project and we've hung out a few times to study but always with Caitlin and his friend Simon. But he texts me a lot, but he could text a lot of girls." She said. "He's great, but he's the quarterback and he's super popular and a lot of girls like him."

JJ studied her for a moment. "Are you worried he doesn't like you, or are you worried he does?"

Sophia looked at her and sighed. "I don't like when people get close. They learn things."

"You don't have to tell him anything about it, Sophia."

"Last night we watched a movie about girls that got kidnapped and I had to leave the room because I was having, like, a flashback or something." She said. "He knew something was wrong, I could see it."

"It sounds like he was just concerned about you." She said. "Sophia, there is no rule that says you have to tell everyone your life story. It's none of their business, and there is nothing wrong with keeping things to yourself if that's what you want to do."

"But he's going to ask questions, they all do." She said. "It's easy to answer vaguely and change the subject when they don't know you well. But what if we start dating? Am I just supposed to lie to everyone my whole life?"

"No, and I think you're getting ahead of yourself." She smiled. "Right now, he's just a boy you like and who might like you back. You don't have to decide everything right now. Just see how it goes."

"And that's what I said." Caitlin said, walking back into the room.

Sophia smiled. "Yeah, but it sounds better coming from JJ."

JJ grinned. "Look, it's your story. If he asks questions and the time seems right and you want him to know, then tell him, but don't stress about it. I'll get your Mom." She said. "And hey, be careful at this party tonight. If we get caught up in this tonight, call Will to pick you up."

"You got it." Sophia nodded. JJ and Will were her godparents and anytime Garcia had to travel with the team she stayed at their house.

OOOOO

Sophia and Caitlin were dropped off in the driveway of Liam's house and headed through the gate to the back yard. Liam's house was pretty big and his backyard was no exception. It had a pool, hot tub, and large deck connected to the house. The yard was fenced in and still had a large empty area behind the pool.

The yard was filled with students but not nearly as many as Sophia thought would be there. She thought it was going to be a massive party but it looked more like an exclusive party for the football team, cheerleaders and a few other people. For some reason, that made Sophia feel a bit special.

"Hey, you made it." Liam grinned, throwing an arm around Sophia. He had been drinking, just enough to loosen him up.

"Yeah," She smiled. "Nice house."

"Want a tour?"

"Maybe later," Sophia eyed Caitlin.

"Alright," He nodded. "Want to play beer pong with us?"

"Yeah, we do." Caitlin said. "But I need my girl on my team."

"Oh, okay." Liam nodded with a laugh as Sophia was pulled away. "Guys vs. Girls then."

Neither Sophia nor Caitlin ever drank much before but they were good at this game. It didn't take long for them to get into their rhythm and they quickly won the game. Liam and Simon were pretty surprised and they didn't take losing too well.

"You got lucky." Liam said with a grin.

"Tell yourself that if it makes you feel better." Sophia smiled. "I'll take that tour now."

"We can start with the kitchen. I should make some food for these drunks." He nodded towards the rowdy guys by the pool.

"Probably a good idea." Sophia followed him inside. The house was quiet. "What do you want to make?"

"I'm just going to throw in some pizzas." He said, pulling a few out of the freezer.

"So," Sophia said as she helped him. "What do your parents do?"

He smirked, very aware that she was mocking him. "My Dad is a doctor and my Mom is a lawyer."

"Fancy," She said.

"Well, it's not as cool as FBI," He said. "But it works."

"It's not that cool." Sophia said. "My Dads travel a lot and my Mom works late so sometimes it really sucks."

"I know that feeling." He said and she figured his parents worked a lot too. "Hey, can I ask you a personal question?"

"Sure," She said slowly.

"You said your parents aren't together, but which one of your Dads is your real Dad?"

"You mean, which one is my biological father? They're both very real people." She smiled. "Neither, I was adopted."

"Oh," He said. "Now it makes more sense."

Sophia laughed. "Just a bit, huh?"

"Do you know your biological parents?"

"Yeah, they died when I was eight and then I was adopted." She frowned slightly. "It's a long story."

"Well, we have eighteen minutes to kill." He said, looking at the timer on the oven. "No pressure, though."

Sophia smiled hesitantly. It was always hard for her to figure out the best way to tell the story. She didn't want to say too much, but not saying enough caused people to ask more questions. It took her awhile but she finally figured out the best way to say things; telling a short version of exactly what happened.

"My Dad was one of five undercover cops working this human trafficking case in Chicago. Their cover got blown and they were taken and the FBI was called in to get them back. But they couldn't save them. My Dad was barely alive when they got to him but he told them he heard them planning to go after the families of the cops. He made Agent Morgan promise to keep me safe before he died."

"That's intense." He said. "What happened to your Mom?"

"My Mom was in the hospital, she had a nervous breakdown when my Dad was taken." She sighed, this was the hardest part for her. Mental illness still had a stigma, and although her Mom was sick most of her life, she always tried to make sure she talked about her with dignity. She wasn't sure if that was out of respect for her Mother, or simply because it made her feel vulnerable to tell people her mother committed suicide. "And when they told her that he was dead and I was missing, she was sure I wasn't coming back, so she overdosed on antidepressants."

"You were taken?" He frowned and Sophia could see the gears working in his head. "So, that's why you couldn't watch the movie."

"It's a trigger for my PTSD, I had a panic attack." She explained. "Look Liam, I don't like talking about it and I don't want people to know."

"I won't tell anyone." He said sincerely. "Why did you tell me?"

"I don't know, maybe I don't want to hide things from you." She shrugged. "If there is one thing I've learned from all that, and from being the daughter of FBI agents, it's that I've become a pretty could judge of character."

"So, you trust me."

"No, but I want to." She said. "You're different, Liam."

He couldn't help the smile the slipped out. She saw right through his popularity and jock status. She was different to him too. She wasn't like any girl he's dated before and he wondered why it took him so long to notice her as more than just a friend.

"I will say this, I'm glad that Agent Morgan kept his promise all these years."

Sophia smiled. "He always said that I became his mission because he was a Chicago cop too and he worked undercover and it could have easily been him and his family."

"It was personal," Liam nodded. "I get that."

"As bad as it was, I'll never forget seeing him come in. One of the guys pulled a gun on me and he had to talk him down, and it was like, he really cared, you know?" She said. "The things he said, we had this connection and I knew he was going to save me."

"And he just brought you back to DC?"

"Not exactly, when the guy let me go, my other Dad, Dr. Reid, he brought me outside and he told me about my Mom and I freaked out." Sophia said with a small laugh as she remembered. "He calmed me down but I didn't want him to leave me so he came with me to the hospital. He said he couldn't just hand me over to child services to be put in foster care after all I went through. He felt responsible for me, so he convinced them to put me in federal custody for my protection, and the rest is history."

Liam laughed at the way she ended it. "You're a pretty good story teller."

"Well, I've had lots of practise with this one." She said. "I've learned what not to say and for a while I just made stuff up. That was really fun, but according to my parents it wasn't "honest" and it meant I wasn't dealing with my feelings."

He laughed again. "FBI profilers sound a bit like therapists."

"Oh, they're worse." She said. "My Dads study human behaviour and the connections they make are literally insane. It's like they're mind readers."

"It still sounds really cool to me." He said.

"That's because you haven't been subjected to it yet."

"So, hypothetically speaking, if I wanted to take you on a date,"

"They'd find out all they need to know about you by the way you walked up to the house," She said. "You wouldn't even have to say a word."

"That's kind of intimidating." He said. "Did I mention that your Dads are really intimidating? One is so smart it's unnatural and the other one is not only smart, but built like a brick wall."

Sophia laughed. "I'd tell you they're harmless, but I'd be lying. They are really fair though and considering you're actually a good guy, you have nothing to worry about, hypothetically speaking that is." She added.

"Of course." He nodded. "So, if I did ask you out, what would you say?"

"I don't know," She shrugged. "I guess you're just going to have to man up and ask to find out."

"Alright," He grinned. "Sophia, would you like to go out on a date with me tomorrow night?"

"Hmm," She said, trying to hide her smile. "I think I would."

"Liam, you've got to get out here, man." Simon called frantically from the screen door.

Sophia exchanged a glance with Liam before they both headed back outside. People were gathered around a girl, she was lying unconscious on the pool deck and she was soaking wet. "What happened?"

"She fell in and she must have hit her head." Simon said. "There was a bunch of people in the pool, we didn't notice at first. We don't know how long she's been out."

Sophia pushed passed the crowd and dropped to her knees beside the girl, checking for breathing sounds before looking to Liam. "She's not breathing." She moved the girls head to tilt it back and noticed the blood on her hand. She looked at Liam and he looked at her hand.

"Did anyone call 911?" Liam shouted and looked around.

"I'm on with them right now." Caitlin said as she watched Sophia. "Paramedics are coming but they said to start CPR."

Sophia started CPR but it wasn't working. She knew it could take a while since water was probably in the girls lungs but it didn't help Sophia calm down and neither did the approaching sirens. Caitlin watched Sophia closely, she knew this wasn't going to go well. There was a girl Sophia was kidnapped with who passed out, and hit her head. They tried to do CPR but they couldn't revive her.

Caitlin knew her friend's triggers, she understood PTSD and the signs and she even went through a class to help Sophia cope. But once a trigger happened, there was very little she could do for Sophia. When the paramedics took over, Caitlin took Sophia to the bathroom to wash the blood off her hands and as the water in the sink turned read, the flashbacks started.

Sophia backed away from the sink and Caitlin got her to sit on the floor. "Call your Dad." She said, and Sophia pulled out her phone, dialing the number with shaky hands.

"Sophia, I'm really busy right now." Reid said quickly. "Can I call you back?"

"Daddy," She said through the tears.

Reid stopped suddenly. Anytime he heard his daughter cry, he went on high alert and nothing else mattered in that moment except her. "What's wrong?"

"Please, come get me."

"What happened?"

"Daddy, please, I want to go home."

"Okay, okay, I'm going to come get you." He said, nodding to Morgan to follow him.

"Don't hang up."

"I'm not going to hang up." He climbed in the car and put her on speaker phone as Morgan began driving. "Sophia, Dad's with me. Can you tell us what's going on?"

"This girl, she fell into the pool and hit her head. They pulled her out put she wasn't breathing and I tried to do CPR but it wasn't working. There was blood, it's on me." She cried, her voice in hysterics. "The paramedics, I don't know if they got her back."

"Sophia, listen to me." Reid said gently. "It's a trigger, you're having a flashback. It's part of your PTSD. I need you to breathe for me, okay?"

"I feel like I can't breathe." She cried harder. "Daddy, I'm so scared."

"Sophia, it will pass, I promise you." Reid said. "But you have to try and calm down."

"I can't." She said.

"Yes, baby, you can. But you need to listen to me right now. Close your eyes and just listen to my voice." Morgan said. "Do you remember last Christmas when we went to Chicago and you made cookies with Aunt Desiree? You two got so caught up with dance dance revolution that you almost burned the house down but you two just laughed about it. How did that day make you feel?"

"Happy," She mumbled.

"Concentrate on that memory, Sophia." Reid said as they pulled into the driveway and he took her off speaker as they approached the house. "It was a good day spent with family, you were happy and you laughed a lot."

"You can't go in," An officer said, trying to stop them. "This is a crime scene."

Morgan flashed his badge. "FBI."

"FBI?" The officer frowned but stepped out of the way.

Morgan headed up the stairs with Reid right behind him. He saw Liam standing outside a door in the hallway and he was sure Sophia and Caitlin were inside the bathroom. "Agent Morgan, Dr. Reid." Liam said nervously as the door opened.

"Dad," Sophia said, immediately going into Morgan's embrace. She needed to feel protected right now, he knew that. He held her for a few moments before passing her to Reid who took Sophia and Caitlin out to the car.

"Are your parents here, Liam?" Morgan asked once they were gone.

"They just got home." He nodded.

"I'm guessing the girl didn't make it?" He said and Liam shook his head. "Tell me what happened."

"Everyone was outside and they were in and out of the pool and hot tub and just hanging out. Sophia and I came inside to make some pizzas and then Simon yelled for me to come outside."

"So, you didn't see what happened?"

"No," He said. "Simon said they weren't sure how long she was under or what happened because there was a lot of people in the pool. When they got her out they noticed the blood on her head so we thought she must have hit her head somehow."

Morgan frowned. "But that's not what happened?"

"They said someone hit her." He shook his head. "Someone killed her and that someone is one of my friends."

"No they aren't." Morgan shook his head. "I'm guessing the girl that died is really popular and she's blonde, right?"

Liam nodded. "How did you know that?"

"Because she's not the first victim." He said. "My team is working this case and they are on their way here right now."

"How do you know it's the same person?"

"The guy were looking for is out of high school, he's in his late twenty's, and he's targeting girls who resemble and remind him of the girl who rejected him in high school. He comes to high school parties, he blends in, he finds a girl, he lures her away and then he attacks them. It's always blunt force trauma to the head and they're always found in pools."

"But, why?" Liam sounded so innocent in that moment, like he realized the world wasn't filled with good people, and Morgan felt for him.

"He's trying to make it look like an accident. A party with teenagers and alcohol around a pool screams disaster and he's using that." Morgan explained. "But none of this is yours, or anyone else's, fault. We will catch this guy."

Liam nodded and followed Morgan downstairs to find his parents. Morgan headed out to the SUV just as the rest of the team was arriving. He signaled that he needed a minute as he opened the back door and climbed in next to Sophia. Reid was on the other side of her and Caitlin was in the front.

"Hey, baby girl, how are you doing?" He asked as he wrapped an arm around her and pulled her to his chest. "You haven't been having a good couple of days, huh?"

"I went so long without anything triggering it." She mumbled. "And now two things in two days."

"Sophia, we've talked about this, you can't control and you can't beat yourself up when it happens." He reminded. "It's going to happen but you'll get through it."

"I know." She sighed. "Dad?"

"Yeah, baby?"

"You're going to catch this guy, right?"

Morgan looked down at her. "You bet we will."

_**Reviews make writers happy. Happy writers write more often.**_


	6. Chapter 6

"Daddy?" Sophia called out, sitting up in her bed with her night stand lamp on. Reid's room was the closest to hers and he could always hear her call out in the middle night of the night. "Daddy?"

He opened the door and she was startled, even though she knew he was coming. "What's wrong sweetheart?" He asked, coming to sit in the bed with her.

"I can't sleep." She said.

Reid frowned. "Are you having nightmares?"

"Every time I turn the lights off and close my eyes, I see them." He knew she was talking about the guys that kidnapped her. It wasn't the death of the girl that was bothering her, seeing that had triggered her memories of the most traumatic moment in her life.

"Sophia, they can't hurt you. You have to remind yourself of that. I know it's hard and it was a scary thing, but we will never let anything happen to you." He had to remind her of that, she needed to hear it.

"I know, but I'm still scared." She whined slightly. "Will you read to me?"

"Okay," He said with a yawn, wrapping an arm around her, pulling her close and grabbing the book off the night stand. "Close your eyes and try to relax."

"Are you going to leave?" She asked.

"No, sweetheart, I will never leave you."

OOOOO

Reid sat in the conference room the next morning and ran a hand over his tired eyes. JJ was sitting across from him and frowned. "Tired?"

"Yeah, I was reading to Sophia most of the night." He sighed. "She wouldn't go to sleep."

"She's having nightmares?"

"More like night terrors. She's having flashbacks from the kidnapping." He said. "It should stop when we catch the unsub but I think us leaving is only going to make it worse."

"Is she okay?" The concern was evident in her voice and eyes.

"Yeah, she's just too in her head about it." He said. "The therapist said she's fine, she just needs to take control of the episodes instead of letting them control her."

"Even without her past, that's a traumatic event to go through for a bunch of fifteen year old kids." JJ said. "How's Caitlin?"

"She's a bit shook up, but she said she'll be okay once we catch him." He said. "I just don't like leaving her when she's like this."

"I know that feeling." JJ sighed. "This job is not parent friendly."

"She has a date tonight."

"With Liam?" JJ said with excitement.

Reid frowned with a smile. "How did you know that?"

"She's my Goddaughter, she tells me things." She grinned with a shrug. "I'm so upset I'm going to miss her first date."

"So is Morgan, but for different reasons." Reid smirked. "But with everything going on with this case, we told her she can't go out tonight."

"How'd she take it?"

"Not that great." Reid said, nodding towards Morgan who was on the phone with Sophia.

"You're not going." Morgan said as he walked into the police station. "There's a killer on the loose, targeting teenage girls, and my daughter is not going to be his next victim."

"Dad, it's our first date, it's my first date." She said. "And it's with Liam. You know, quarterback, super popular, really hot, Liam."

"I'm not saying no forever, just not tonight." He said. "If he really likes you, he will wait until we wrap up this case."

"Dad, come on, please." She begged.

"Sophia, what did I just say?" He said. "The answer is no."

She sighed. She knew that tone and she knew better than to argue with him. "Yeah, okay."

Morgan hung up and walked into the conference room just as Reid's phone started ringing. He had a pretty good idea who it was. "Is that Sophia?"

"Yeah," He nodded as he answered. "Hi, Sophia."

"Daddy," She whined. "Will you please let me go out with Liam tonight, please?"

Reid sighed. "Sophia, I'm sorry, but I really don't think it's a good idea right now."

"But Daddy, I really want to go and I can't cancel." She said. "It's Liam, you like Liam."

"I do like him and I want him to stay safe too." He said as Morgan grabbed the phone from him.

"Hey, don't do that." Morgan warned. "Don't pit us against each other so you can get what you want."

"Are you trying to ruin my life?" She demanded.

"We're trying to keep you safe, Sophia." Morgan's patience was wearing down. "Liam can come over to the house and watch a movie with you there, but you're not going out tonight."

"That's not a real date."

"Well, that's the best we can do."

"You're being completely unfair." She said. "He goes after blondes, I'm a brunette. He targets parties, we're going to the movies. Not to mention the fact that he probably already saw me at the party and he didn't pick me so I think I'm good."

"Sophia, the answer is still no and this is not a discussion." He said and was surprised when he heard a click. He looked at Reid and shook his head as he handed him his phone back. "She hung up on me."

"Probably because she still has one parent left." Reid said and called Garcia. "Let me talk to her first."

"This is your local oracle." She answered. "How may I be of service?"

"Has Sophia called you?"

"Yes, she is on the other line right now." She said.

"Can you connect us?" He asked. "Morgan is calling in now."

"Of course." She said. "Sophia, are you still there."

"Mama, you have to convince them to let me go tonight."

"Sophia, we've already talked about this." Reid interrupted and he made eye contact with Morgan, signaling him to hold back. "Until we catch this unsub, you're staying at home."

"But Daddy, it's only for a few hours."

"Sophia, enough." Morgan said. "We are not discussing this anymore and if you keep this up, you can spend the weekend alone in your room. Do you hear me?"

"Yeah, I hear you." She said before hanging up.

"Did she just hang up on me?" Morgan asked. "Again?"

"She did." Garcia said. "Pick your battles, my love."

Morgan sighed. "I don't like this new attitude she's got."

"I'm more concerned about the dramatic shift from last night." Reid said. "She went from being terrified to essentially fearless in less than twenty-four hours."

"Oh boys," Garcia sighed. "You just don't get it, do you?"

"Enlighten us." Morgan said.

"She likes this boy, a lot." She said. "And when a teenage girl likes a boy, she will move heaven and earth to be with him and the more you tell her she can't, the more she is going to want to."

"I'll never understand that unattainable urge to always want what you cannot have." Reid said.

"It's more of a girl thing." Garcia said.

"Do you think she's going to try and sneak out?" Reid frowned. "If we're all working tonight, it's probably going to cross her mind."

"She better not." Morgan said.

"Reid is probably right. It's what I would have done at her age." Garcia said. "You might want to check on her later tonight."

OOOOO

Caitlin walked into Sophia's house after being dropped off by her mother. She had gotten called into work and didn't want to leave her home alone with everything going on. Caitlin always just walked into their house, it was practically her second home, and Sophia did the same at her house.

"Hey," She called out, taking off her shoes.

"Hey," Sophia said, stepping into the hallway from the kitchen.

"Sorry for crashing your date." She said. "My Aunt is out of town this weekend and you know how my Mom gets."

"It's fine, it was already ruined anyway." She said, brushing it off. "My parents have pretty much put me on house arrest."

"What did Liam say when you cancelled?"

"He said he understood and we'd reschedule." Sophia sighed. "I invited him over but he's going to the movies with the rest of the team, and the cheerleaders." She added in.

"So, you're jealous?" Caitlin grinned. "Those airheads have nothing on you."

Sophia smirked. "Well, I'd like to make sure of that myself."

"What do you have in mind?"

"I can't leave the house," She said slowly. "So, what if we had some people over?"

"You want to have a party when there is a serial killer, targeting blonde girls at parties?" She said slowly. "Did you forget I'm blonde?"

"I don't have a pool and we'll watch movies in the basement." She said. "Or, we can just go with them to the theatre?"

Caitlin nodded. "You already told him to pick us up, didn't you?"

"Yeah, kind of." She said. "So, we need to get ready."

Caitlin never took much convincing when it came to the schemes they planned. They were your typical best friends and partners in crime. They got ready, doing their hair and going a bit heavy on the makeup before changing. Caitlin wore black skinny jeans with a grey v-neck t-shirt, a long sleeve plaid shirt and black combat boots. Sophia wore skinny jeans with knee high brown boots, a sleeves pink chiffon button up tank top and an oversized cardigan.

They reached the bottom of the stairs, putting their coats on and grabbing their bags just as the door opened and Morgan walked in with Reid right behind him. He looked at them, made eye contact with Sophia briefly and knew exactly what their plan was and that Reid was right. He looked angry, but he was good at staying calm even when he was mad. Reid looked disappointed as he looked at his daughter before he exchanged a glance with Morgan.

"Hi Dad," She said slowly. "Hi Daddy."

"Sophia Grace," Morgan shook his head. He didn't need to ask her any questions about what she was doing or where she was going, he already knew, and she knew he knew. "You go upstairs, you take that make-up off, and you wait for me in your room, Caitlin too. Do you hear me?"

"Yes, Dad." Sophia mumbled nervously before disappearing upstairs with Caitlin.

Morgan put his hands on his hips as he watched them go before turning to Reid, shaking his head and sighing. "I'm going to need a few minutes before I go up there."

"Maybe I should go." Reid said. "I have a feeling this has something to do with the flashbacks."

Morgan frowned. "How so?"

"I talked to Sophia's therapist this morning and she told Sophia to take control of the episodes. Last night she couldn't sleep, she was terrified, she wouldn't let me leave the room. I think she's trying to take control of the fear that's consuming her." He explained. "I think she's still afraid and she didn't want to be in the house alone tonight, even if it was only for a short time and even if Caitlin was here."

"Okay, but why wouldn't she just tell us that?" Morgan frowned. "Regardless of the reason, I'm not going to put up with the attitude she's been giving us all day and I'm sure as hell not going to let her deliberately disobey us."

"I agree. But we have to be careful how we deal with this because we have to go back to work." He said. "I'll call JJ and see if we can drop Sophia and Caitlin off with Will."

Morgan nodded and headed up the stairs. He knew Reid would catch up and talk to Sophia after he did. They all had different parenting styles but they were almost always on the same page. He knocked on the door before opening it. Sophia and Caitlin were sitting on her bed and they fell silent when he walked into the room.

"Caitlin, can you wait for us in the guest room." It wasn't a question and she knew that. He closed the door behind her. "Alright, enough is enough, Sophia." He said as pulled out the chair from the desk and sat down, resting his elbows on his knees as he leaned forward. "It's time for you and me to have a little sit down."

Sophia sighed. "Technically, I didn't do anything wrong."

Morgan raised his eyebrows. "Okay Little Miss, this attitude you've got going today, it stops, right now. Look at me, Sophia." He waited until she made eye contact. "You got it?"

Sophia nodded. "Yeah, I got it."

"Good." He said. "Where you planning to sneak out of this house and go the movies, even after we told you no?"

"Yeah, we were." She said after a moment's hesitation.

"And if we wouldn't have come home when we did, would you have gone?" Sophia looked at him briefly before looking down and nodding. "Then, technically, you did do something wrong."

"But Dad, you don't understand how important this date was to me."

"No, you don't seem to understand that when I tell you no, I mean no. My rules are not suggestions that you can disregard anytime you like. You are grounded for a week and if you disobey me again, it will be a month. Do you understand me now?"

Sophia nodded. "Yes, Dad."

Morgan studied her for a moment before nodding as well. "Now, do you want to tell me what's going on in that head of yours or do I have to guess?"

Sophia shrugged, not sure what to say, when Reid walked in. He sat on the bed next to his daughter and waited to see if she was going to answer the question. When it became clear she wasn't going to, he interrupted.

"Are you scared to be in the house alone?" Sophia nodded, frowning as she played with the pillow in her lap. Reid took the pillow out of her hands and slipped his fingers under her chin, tilting it up so she would look at him. "You know you're supposed to talk to us about this."

"I'm supposed to figure it out by myself." She said. "The therapist said I need to take control of the fear because only I can stop it."

"You're supposed to take control of the flashbacks, but that doesn't mean you have to do it by yourself." Reid reminded her as he let her go. "And it most certainly doesn't mean that you can disobey us. You're PTSD is not a free pass for you to behave however you want."

"But what was I supposed to stay? I'm afraid to stay home alone, take time off work?" She said. "You can't do that, you don't have normal jobs."

"That is exactly what you're supposed to say." Morgan said. "We can take time off if needed and we can make sure you feel safe and protected when we aren't here."

"Sophia, we've had this conversation before." Reid said gently. "When this happens, you talk to us about it, you don't act out."

"I know, I'm sorry, Daddy." She mumbled. "Sorry, Dad."

"We forgive you, baby girl." Morgan said.

"And we love you." Reid said.

_**Reviews make writers happy. Happy writers write more often.**_


	7. Chapter 7

"Are you okay?" Reid asked Callahan as they stood in the field where the plane crashed.

"Yeah," She frowned as she looked around. "My sister and brother in law died in 9/11. They worked at the Pentagon."

"I'm so sorry. I can imagine that this could probably bring back a lot of painful memories."

"Yeah," She nodded. "Anyway, I don't want to be that weepy agent with the tragic past."

"My girlfriend was killed in front of me and my mother has schizophrenia." Reid said. "Since we're sharing."

"Thanks for letting me know." She said. "After they died, we moved into their house. They had a baby girl, Meg. She's thirteen now and the light of my life."

"I have a daughter too." Reid smiled. "Sophia, she's fifteen."

"Doesn't Penelope have a fifteen year old daughter, who is also named Sophia?" Callahan frowned slightly. "Did you two have a kid together?"

"Oh, no, not like that." Reid laughed. "Morgan, Garcia, and I adopted Sophia when she was eight. It's a long story, but she was a part of a case we were working."

"Right, Garcia did tell me that part." She said. "You rescued her but her parents didn't make it."

"So, I broke protocol and brought her home with me." He said with a smile. "She's had my heart ever since."

"It's funny how kids can completely change your life." Callahan smiled. "So, how does it work, you three being her parents?"

"I don't really know, it just does." Reid shrugged. "We all felt connected to her and wanted to be a part of her life so we just figured it out."

"That's what Chris and I did too." She nodded. "Suddenly we had a baby to take care of, but there's nothing better, no bigger reward."

Reid nodded as his phone rang. "Speaking of my daughter," He smiled as he answered it. "Hi, Sophia."

"Hi, Daddy, when will you be home?"

"We just got here, it might be awhile."

Sophia was quiet for a minute. "I miss you."

"I miss you too, sweetheart." He said with a frown. "What's wrong?"

"I need help studying." She said. "We have this big test in American History tomorrow and I'm stressing out."

"Are you prepared?"

"Not really," She mumbled. "I kind of left it to the last minute."

"Again?" Reid raised his eyebrows. "Sophia, you need to break that habit."

"I know, I've been trying." She whined slightly. "Will you help me?"

"Of course I will." Reid sighed. "If I don't make it home tonight we can skype, okay?"

"Okay," She mumbled again. "Can you not tell Dad? He's already mad at me."

Reid frowned. "He's not mad at you, Sophia."

"He didn't talk to me yesterday at all, he spent the day with Savannah, and he never said goodbye this morning." She said. "He never even told me he was leaving."

"I know it feels personal, but it's not, this case was an emergency and we had to leave fast. Give him a call, everything's okay, I promise." He said. "I have to go, Sophia, but I'll call you tonight, alright?"

"Yeah, okay." She sighed; it felt like he was brushing her off. "Bye, Daddy."

"Bye, sweetheart." Reid frowned and let out a sigh as he hung up.

"Everything okay?" Callahan asked.

"Yeah, Sophia gets a bit uneasy when we're away." He said. "Her biological father was a police officer, killed in the line of duty, so it's a bit hard for her sometimes."

"I'm starting to see that with Meg too." She said. "Being away from her is the one part of this job I really don't like."

"Unfortunately, it doesn't get any easier to leave them." He said. "But kids are highly adaptive and they get used to it for the most part."

OOOOO

"Hey Sophia, I'm still at work." Garcia said when she called the house that afternoon. "I can't leave so I won't be home for dinner, but Will is going to pick you up."

"Yeah, okay." Sophia sighed.

Garcia frowned. "What's wrong?"

"I haven't heard from Dad all day."

"There a little busy with this case, Sophia." Garcia explained. "This one is a bit more time constricting than other cases."

"Yeah, hijacked planes, it's all over the news." She mumbled. "He never told me he was leaving."

"It was an emergency case." Garcia tried to explain. "They went straight to the plane."

"He always calls or texts me when he leaves for a case to let me know." She said. "But he didn't do that today."

"He just got busy, Sophia, that's all."

"Has he called you today?"

Garcia hesitated. Her daughter was smart and she knew where this was going. "He has."

"Then he's seen my messages." She said. "And Daddy answered my call this morning, so why is he ignoring me? I didn't see or talk to him yesterday either. He was with Savannah all day."

"Sophia, I promise you he's not ignoring you."

"Well, it feels like he is." She said and was quiet for a moment. "Did I do something wrong? Is this because I was going to sneak out?"

"No, of course not. You did nothing wrong, Sophia. It's just a misunderstanding."

"Does he not want to be my Dad anymore?" She asked and it almost broke Garcia's heart.

"Of course he does, Sophia." She said with a frown. "You're his whole world."

"Then why won't he talk to me?" Sophia started to cry. "He knows I called. I left him a voicemail and I sent him text messages and nothing. He spent all of yesterday with Savannah. He came home late and he left early this morning and he never said goodbye. They're supposed to always say goodbye."

"Sophia, I know they are." She said. "Listen, I'm going to call him and sort this out as soon as I can."

Garcia hung up when she was confident she had her daughter calmed down enough. She was especially glad Will was on his way over after that phone call. She knew Morgan wasn't doing any of this on purpose, but she was upset because Sophia was upset, so she angrily dialed his number.

"Hey Garcia, what do you got?"

"Derek, you better call our daughter." She snapped. "I understand that you're busy and the importance of this case but she doesn't. All she understands is that her Dad spent yesterday with his girlfriend, left for work without seeing her and then ignored her calls. I know you are her father, but I am her mother and I'm about to go all Mama Bear protecting her cub on you."

"Whoa, pump your breaks." Morgan said. "What is going on?"

"Sophia is upset because she hasn't heard from you."

"I saw her messages. I'm going to call her once this is over."

"No, you need to call her right now." Garcia said. "She thinks you don't want to be her Dad anymore. She thinks she did something wrong, Derek."

"Why would she think that?" He frowned.

"Oh, I don't know, Derek." Garcia said sarcastically. "Maybe because you two got into on Saturday, and then you grounded her, and then you left and spent the next day and night with Savannah. So, let me see, you haven't seen or talked to our daughter in almost two days. She's a fifteen years old girl, what else is she supposed to think?"

"Yeah," Morgan sighed. "I'll call her."

"Good, call me back when you're done."

Morgan hung up and called Sophia but she didn't pick up. He frowned when he got her voicemail and he wondered if she was ignoring him now. "Sophia, I'm sorry I missed your calls, things have been a little crazy today. I know your upset, and I want to talk about this. I love you, baby girl."

OOOOO

"Are you going to answer it?" Will asked as they drove.

Sophia was staring at the screen on her phone as it rang. "No." She mumbled.

"Who is it?" He glanced at the screen and frowned. "Why aren't you picking up?"

"He never answered my calls." Sophia said. "And he's only calling now because Mom told him too."

"What's going on?" He asked. "Come on, talk to me."

"I got grounded on Saturday."

"Oh, I heard that story." He glanced at her. "Sneaking out to see a boy?"

"If he saw him you'd understand." She said and Will smirked. "So, that happened and then Dad spent the day with Savannah and he came home late. I didn't see or talk to him all day and then he left for work early today and he hasn't been answering my calls or messages."

"Their job," Will sighed. "It is really hard on the family."

"I know, but he always calls or texts, or something." She said. "He always tells me when he's leaving."

"Sometimes the cases are a little more work and they can't step away." He explained. "Trust me, I know what it's like and it's not fair and it's hard sometimes, but your Dad loves you, Sophia. Nothing changes that, no matter what you do or say, a father loves his child through it all."

"Then why does it feel like he doesn't?"

"Sometimes, when we miss someone and we feel hurt because they're away, it's easier to convince ourselves that we did something wrong that makes them want to be away. But we didn't, and they don't want to be away, it's just what is." He said as he looked at her. "Don't push him away because you're hurt, that won't make you feel any better."

OOOOO

Garcia picked Sophia up from Will's later that night once the case closed. The others were on their way home but they wouldn't land until late. Usually Sophia would ask to stay up and wait for them, but she didn't this time. She said she was tired, and maybe she was, but Garcia knew something was still bothering her.

When they came in the door, Sophia heard them and woke up. She turned on her light and got out of bed when she heard them coming up the stairs. She paused halfway across her room; her emotions were playing games with her. She wanted them to come to her, but she was afraid they wouldn't want to wake her and wait until morning.

Morgan stopped outside her door and opened it slowly. When he saw the light, he stepped into the room and saw Sophia standing there. For a moment they just looked at each other before he crossed the room, closing the distance between them, and grabbed her in a hug, crushing her to his chest.

Sophia was taken by surprise at first, but she quickly returned the embrace. She started to cry, and Morgan only held her tighter. He pulled back after a few moments, putting his hands around her upper arms and leaning down to her eye level.

"I love you, so much." He said. "I'm sorry if I made you doubt that."

"I know." Sophia nodded as he wiped the tears from her eyes. "I love you too."

"Come here, baby girl." He said and led her back into bed and sat down with her. He leaned against the headboard, put an arm around her and pulled her in close. "You are the best decision I ever made, the best thing that has ever happened to me, and you are the greatest joy in my life. You will always come first."

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	8. Chapter 8

Sophia sat in the emergency room with Caitlin after soccer practise. She got tripped during their practise, it was an accident, the grass was wet and she was fighting for the ball with her team mate and they both crashed to the ground. Her teammate hurt her knee pretty bad, she could barely walk. Sophia hit the ground a bit hard, she tried to brace her fall and ended up breaking her arm.

Caitlin was sitting in one of the chairs as Sophia was on the bed in the emergency room while they waited for a doctor. The nurse had already taken an x-ray, so they knew her forearm was broken and they were just waiting for the doctor to set it. Caitlin's mother was working at the hospital and Sophia hoped she'd be with the doctor. She hated hospitals, but Caitlin's mother was a great nurse.

"Sophia?" The doctor said and hesitated for a moment as she looked at the chart. She quickly recovered and looked up with a smile. "I'm Doctor Hayes. Can you tell me what happened?"

"Soccer practise in the rain happened." Caitlin said.

Sophia grinned and the doctor seemed amused. "I ran into another girl from my team when we were fighting for the ball. I got the ball, she tried to stop me and stuck her leg out, which I tripped over and then fell on my arm."

"Okay, I'm going to have a look." She said, as she gently picked up Sophia's arm. "Your x-rays show a fracture of the radius, but it's clean and it should heal fine on its own. Are your parents here?"

"They're on the way." Sophia said. "They're at work but the school called them."

"I'll go check to see if they're here." A nurse said and left the room. She returned pretty quickly with Morgan by her side.

"Oh good, it's your Dad." Caitlin said when she saw him. "No offense Sophia, but your Mom, so not good in a crisis."

Sophia laughed and Morgan came to her side quickly. He put his hand on the back of her head as he kissed her forehead. "How's my girl?"

"Clumsy." Sophia smiled at him, reassuring him that she was okay.

Morgan smirked and turned to the doctor but the smile quickly faded when he saw Savannah. "Derek," She said with a nod, a bit of confusion in her voice and frown forming on her face as she processed it.

"Savannah," He said, surprised and Sophia and Caitlin quickly exchanged a glance. Morgan hadn't introduced Savannah to Sophia yet, but Savannah didn't even know about Sophia. He was going to tell her eventually, but the time hadn't come. "This is Sophia, my daughter. Sophia, this is Savannah, my girlfriend."

"Well, this just got awkward." Caitlin mumbled.

"Her arm is broken, clean break, but she'll have a cast for about three weeks." She said to him as he nodded before she turned back to Sophia. "Okay, I need to set your arm."

"Yeah, no offense, but you seem kind of distracted." Caitlin interrupted. "Should you be doing this?"

"I'm a professional." She said with a smile and quickly set her arm. It was a clean break, so it wasn't hard to set. It didn't take long and it wasn't too painful for Sophia. "A nurse will put the cast on."

Morgan followed Savannah out of the area and to the nurse's station, away from the crowd. "I know what you're going to say." He said. "I should have told you."

"A year together and you never once mention that you have a daughter?" She said. "God, Derek, this is unbelievable."

"I tried to tell you a million times." He said. "It just never seemed like the right time."

"Who's the mother?" She asked. "We're you married? Are you still married?"

"No, of course not. I adopted Sophia with Penelope and Reid when she was eight years old." He sighed. "Look, I have never introduced her to anyone I've dated before."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

"I told her about you. I've never done that before either." He said. "I know you probably can't understand, but Penelope and Reid and I have always had rules about who we bring into her life. It's not that I didn't want you to know her, I've just been waiting for the right time."

"I can understand not wanting to bring random women into her life, but we have been dating for a year, Derek." She said. "You didn't even tell me about her."

"I know and I get where you're coming from, but Sophia, and what's best for her, always comes first in my life." He explained. "I hope you can understand that."

"I'm going to have to think about it." She sighed. "I'll call you when I'm off shift."

Morgan nodded and headed back over to Sophia. Caitlin's mother was putting the cast on and had just finished. She smiled at Morgan as she left the room. Caitlin gave Sophia a one armed hug before following her Mom out of the room. Morgan helped Sophia off the table and headed out of the hospital. Sophia watched him as he walked passed Savannah and frowned slightly.

"You never told her about me, did you?" Sophia asked once they were in the car.

Morgan sighed. "No, not yet."

"Why not?" Sophia asked. "Did you get too caught up in pretending you didn't have a kid?"

"What?" Morgan frowned and glanced over at her. "Of course not, Sophia."

"Well, either you're not serious about her, or you're ashamed of me."

"Six months after we adopted you, I started dating again and I was so excited about being a new Dad I never shut up about you. I showed pictures, I told stories, and I wanted everyone to meet you." He explained. "The first girl I started dating seriously I brought over way too early, but you two really hit it off. After a few weeks, things went south and we broke up. But you kept asking about her and when I told you we were no longer together, I could tell you were upset." He shook his head. "So, I decided that there was no way I was going to expose you to that hurt again, not unless it was someone that I was really sure about, someone that I loved and could see being a part of our life."

"Oh," She said slowly.

"I'm not ashamed of you, Sophia. You are the best part of me; my best quality." He said. "I want to make sure that only the best people come into your life."

Sophia sighed. "Fine, that's a good answer."

Morgan smirked. "You get that sass from Mama."

"Yes, I know." She grinned.

Morgan and Sophia headed into the FBI building and up to the BAU floor. The minute Sophia stepped off the elevator, Garcia almost attacked her. "Oh my God, are you okay? Your arm is in a cast. Is it broken? How bad is it? What did the doctor say?"

"If you stop talking, I will tell you." Sophia said. "It's broken but I got a purple cast, so that's cool."

"She's okay." Morgan reassured, trying to calm Garcia down. "Sassy comments on the drive over here proved that."

"Can you work the cast into a Halloween costume?" She asked Garcia.

"Can I?" She scoffed. "Of course I can."

"Okay good because Liam is having a huge Halloween party."

"And there it is." Morgan sighed.

"Before you say anything, his parents hired security." She said. "They have a lot of money, and they are going all out for this party. I have to go."

"Or what, you'll die?" Morgan asked with a grin.

"Yes." Sophia said seriously.

Morgan nodded. "We'll talk about it at home."

"Good enough." Sophia said. "Can we go home soon?"

"Yeah, baby, let me just finish up some paper work." Morgan said.

"Let's see the damage." Reid said when Sophia walked into the office. "How bad is it?"

"Broken radius." Sophia said, holding up her arm. "It hurt, it still hurts, but at least it's my left arm."

"Purple?" He frowned as he looked at her cast. "Did they give you any pain medication to take?"

"No, I have to suffer."

Reid grinned. "Sounds like you're fine."

"Yeah, just sore." She said. "I want to go home."

"It won't be long, sweetheart." Reid said, running a hand down the back of her head. When Sophia got hurt or sick she became pretty clingy and could get whiny if she didn't get what she wanted. "We'll order take out. What do you want, Chinese?"

"Uhm," She thought about it. "Can we have Mexican instead?"

"You'll have to ask Mama if she wants to cook." He said. "It's been a long day."

"Why did you ask me if I don't get to decide?" She said. "I want tacos and guacamole dip."

"And I want my daughter to watch her tone." He said with raised eyebrows.

"Daddy," She whined.

"Come here," He said and pulled her into his embrace, holding her against his chest and resting his chin on the top of her head. Sometimes when she got like this all she really wanted was to be comforted.

"Uh oh," Garcia said when she saw Reid holding Sophia. "What's wrong?"

"I want to go home." Sophia mumbled. "My arm hurts and I'm tired and hungry."

Reid smiled down at her before looking to Garcia. "She wants Mexican."

Garcia sighed. "Well, considering you broke your arm, I guess I could make that."

Sophia smiled. "Thanks, Mama."

"I'm going to go ahead with her." Reid said. "I'll see you at home."

Later that night Sophia woke up feeling uncomfortable. Her arm was sore and it was keeping her from sleeping. She became frustrated because she was tired and she couldn't get comfortable enough to fall back asleep. She headed down stairs and started rooting around in the kitchen for pain medication.

Morgan fell asleep in the living room watching a movie and woke up to Sophia in the kitchen. "What are you doing?" He asked as he came into the kitchen. "Are you okay?"

"My arm hurts and I'm so tired but I can't sleep." She said. "I can't reach the Advil."

"It's okay, I can get it." He said, reaching into the cabinet and handing her the bottle. She took two and then gave the bottle back for him to put away. "Come on, let's get you back to bed."

"Can we watch a movie?" She asked. "I can't get comfortable in my bed."

"Yeah, baby girl, we can do that." He put an arm around her and led her to the couch. Morgan sat on the couch with Sophia in his arms and a blanket around them. He put a movie on and it wasn't long until she fell asleep, and he wasn't far behind her.

Garcia came down the stairs the next morning to Morgan and Sophia asleep on the couch. She grinned and pulled out her phone, taking a picture just before Morgan woke up. "Garcia," He shook his head. "That picture better not ever leave your phone."

"Oh, Derek, do you even know how many pictures like this I have?" She grinned and nudged Sophia. "I figured out a great costume for you. It will hide your cast no problem."

"What is it?" Sophia asked with a bit of excitement as she sat up.

"Hey now," Morgan interrupted. "We haven't talked about this yet."

"What haven't we talked about?" Reid asked as he came into the living room to join them.

"Sophia going to a Halloween party at Liam's tonight." Morgan said.

"I definitely want to discuss that." Reid nodded. "I have a few questions and concerns."

"Yeah, about that," Garcia said. "I'm making an executive decision because I already made the costume and it's really cute, so she's going."

Sophia grinned. "Can I see the costume?"

"You bet." She said and they quickly disappeared upstairs.

Reid frowned and looked at Morgan. "What just happened?"

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	9. Chapter 9

"Well, it's about time." Morgan said as Garcia came down the stairs. She had been upstairs helping Sophia and Caitlin get ready for the party. "Are they ready yet?"

"They'll be down in a minute," Garcia said. "And they look amazing."

"Amazing and conservative?" Reid asked. "Halloween costumes are a little too revealing for my taste, and I don't think I can say that I approve of an outfit like that on my fifteen year old daughter."

"That better not happen." Morgan interrupted. "They better not come down in here in short skirts or low cut tops or anything like that."

"Calm down papa bears," Garcia grinned. "They look very respectable."

"Why does that not make me feel better?" Reid asked with a frown as he turned to Morgan. "I'm still not entirely sure of this party idea."

"Well, the decision has already been made." Garcia said. "I want Sophia to have a good high school experience and that includes going to parties and dating boys."

"I want her to have a good experience, I had a horrible time in high school and I don't want that for her, but I also don't want her to make some mistake that's going to follow her in her life." He said. "I think we should talk to her about parties and alcohol and about boys and about pressures."

"And we will, but not tonight." Garcia said.

Sophia and Caitlin came down the stairs dressed as Audrey Hepburn and Marilyn Munro. Sophia was dressed in a black dress with thick stapes that was tight on top and flared out at her waist. She wore long black gloves that went up to her elbows, a few strands of costume pearls around her neck, pearl stud earrings, and her hair up in a bun with a little tiara. She wore black heels, carried a silver clutch and a long cigarette holder, and wore big black sunglasses on her head. Caitlin was wearing the classic white dress with white heels, red lipstick and her hair curled and pinned back in the vintage style.

Morgan and Reid both couldn't help but smile when they saw the girls. They looked great, beautiful, and the costumes fit perfectly with their personalities. "Good job hiding the cast with those gloves," Morgan said to Garcia.

"Why thank you," She smiled.

"You two play divas a bit too well," Reid said with a grin.

"What can we say?" Caitlin said. "We like to stand out."

"You like to stand out." Sophia corrected. "I like to blend in."

"Well, I don't think you're doing too good of a job." Caitlin said. "Dating the quarterback and all."

"I'm sorry," Morgan said. "Dating?"

"And that's for that," Sophia nodded at Caitlin before turning to her three parents. "It's not a big deal."

"It's your first boyfriend." Garcia said with a bit of excitement.

"When did that happen?" Reid asked at the same time.

"You haven't even been on a date." Morgan added.

Sophia sighed. "It's not 1950, boys don't come to the house and ask the father's permission and then take the girl out to a fancy restaurant and a walk in the park."

"How old do you think we are?" Reid frowned.

"And if a boy wants to take my daughter out, he damn well better introduce himself to me first."

"You already met him!" Sophia exclaimed. "He thinks you're incredibly intimidating so don't worry, he's a gentlemen."

"He better be." Morgan said as he glanced at Reid who nodded.

"Between the muscle and the brain," Caitlin said, referring to Morgan and Reid. "I'm surprised Liam even wants to take the chance."

"Yep," Sophia nodded. "And that's why I didn't want them to know."

"Well, we know." Reid said. "And we should probably talk about it."

"Daddy," Sophia whined.

"I agree." Morgan said. "I want to talk to him too."

"Okay," Garcia said with a grin when Sophia looked at her for help. "Let's get you two to the party and we can talk about this later."

"We're picking you up at midnight." Reid reminded.

"And you better not be drunk." Morgan said. "That goes for both of you."

"Dad," Sophia said.

"Sophia, if you think I didn't notice you had been drinking when I picked you up from Liam's last party, you obviously don't know me very well." He said. "Consider that you're only warning."

"Don't worry we know how to say no." Caitlin said with a smile as she looked at Sophia.

"Right," Sophia nodded.

"Alright, come on." Garcia said.

Sophia said goodbye to Morgan and Reid, hugging them as she followed Garcia and Caitlin out the door and to the car. "Please talk to them." Sophia said once they were in the car. "Make sure they don't scare Liam away."

"Sophia, if a boy can't handle talking to your Dads, he's not worth your time." She said. "That one conversation will tell you everything you need to know about a guy."

"I know, but I don't want Dad being too intimidating." Sophia said. "He gets too protective sometimes."

"I don't think there is such a thing as a father being too protective of his daughter." Garcia smiled. "But I'll make sure he doesn't go overboard or take things too far."

"Thank you." She said. "I want him to get out alive, and still interested."

Garcia glanced at her and grinned. "You really like him, don't you?"

"Yeah," Sophia smiled. "I really do."

Sophia and Caitlin arrived at the party and the house was filled with people and decorations, with games and entertainment. It was like being in a Halloween themed club, with a live band, a larger dance floor, smoke machines, lighting, and a variety of games. There was a big table of food and drinks, nothing alcoholic, and Sophia figured that with all the security there was no way Liam's parents were going to let anyone drink this time.

"Hey, you made it," Liam said as he came over to Sophia with a smile. The football team was dressed as football playing zombies and they all looked great. "Nice costumes."

"Remember, she's my costumer partner." Caitlin said. "And we look great together."

"Yes, you do," He nodded. "Can I steal her for a dance?"

"Oh, I suppose." Caitlin sighed before grinning. "I'm going to get a drink."

Liam led Sophia out onto the dance floor just as a slow song started playing. She smiled as he pulled her in close, she had a feeling he planned for a slow song to start playing at his cue. Even dressed as a zombie he was still really good looking and Sophia always felt like she was dreaming when she was with him. She wondered how she got so lucky, and as he spun her around, watching her laugh, he wondered the same thing.

"You're beautiful, you know that?" He said with a grin.

"Always a charmer." She smiled back.

"I think we need to go on a real date, and hopefully we actually make it out this time." He said. "I want to take you out, just me and you."

"I'd like that." She nodded. "But you should know that my Dads want to talk to you before you do."

"I can handle it." He said with a wink. "They don't scare me, not much anyway."

Sophia laughed. "They already met you, and they like you, so it won't be that bad."

"Well, look at that." He said, nodding towards Caitlin talking to the running back, Mark. "He's been asking me about her all week."

"Really?" She asked.

"I told him to man up and just talk to her." He said. "I guess he took my advice."

"Maybe we can double?" She said.

"Not until we get some time alone together." He said. "I feel like we're constantly surrounded by a group of people."

"Well, we're in a room full of people right now," She said as she looked at him. "But you're all I see."

"Who's the charmer now?" He said, leaning in as he kissed her.

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	10. Chapter 10

"What are you doing for Thanksgiving?" Liam asked as he leaned against the lockers while Sophia grabbed her books. "Any big plans?"

"We always have a big dinner with my family and my parents' friends they work with and their families. It's a lot of people but it's always fun." She said. "I love holidays, and this Thanksgiving is pretty special."

"Oh yeah?" He asked. "Why?"

"A few months ago, my Dad got shot while he was working, and it was really bad." She said. "I was so scared he was going to die. So, this year I have a lot to be thankful for."

_Flashback_

_Sophia ran into the hospital emergency room, frantically looking around for anyone from the team. Garcia was right behind her, just as emotional, but a little more controlled than her daughter. When she didn't see anyone from the team, Sophia ran up to nurse's station to demand information._

"_I'm looking for Spencer Reid," She said. "He's an FBI Agent."_

_The nurse hesitated. "Are you family?"_

"_I'm his daughter!" Sophia exclaimed. _

"_Okay," The nurse said as she checked her computer. "He's in surgery. You can wait in the waiting room for the doctor."_

"_That's all you can say? I just flew here from Virginia and had no information except he got shot in the neck." She said. "You expect me to wait in a room until a doctor comes out and tells me whether or not he's dead?"_

"_Sophia, come on." Garcia interrupted before nodding at the nurse. "Thank you."  
><em>

"_No!" She yelled. "I can't sit in a room and wait with no information on whether or not he's okay."_

"_There's nothing else we can." Garcia said gently as she put her hand on her back and tried to guide her to the waiting area._

"_I'm not leaving until I get an update." Sophia said stubbornly._

"_Sophia, please," Garcia said. "I'm just as worried and scared and upset as you are, but making a scene isn't going to do anything."_

"_I'm not making a scene," She hissed. "I just want someone to tell me something!"_

"_What's going on?" Morgan said as he came out into the lobby after getting his arm looked at. He saw Garcia desperately trying to hold herself together while trying to calm their daughter down. _

"_Dad!" Sophia said, jumping him his arms. When she was scared, he was the only person that could make her feel safe, and make her feel like everything was okay. _

"_Sophia," He said, wincing slightly as he moved his arm to hold her. He shook his head when Garcia moved to intervene, he could handle it._

"_She won't go to the waiting area." Garcia explained. _

"_I want someone to tell me he's okay." Sophia mumbled when Morgan put her down, and then the emotions really hit her and she started to break down. "I can't lose my Dad again."_

"_Okay, okay" Morgan frowned and pulled her into his embrace. "He's going to be fine, baby girl."_

_End Flashback_

"What about you?" She asked as she closed her locker and snapped out of her day dream as they started walking down the hall.

"Not much," He shrugged. "My sister is coming home from college."

"I didn't know you had a sister." She frowned. "What's her name?"

"Laura, she's four years older than me." He said. "She's pre-law at Yale."

"Does that mean you'll be pre-med?" Sophia grinned at him.

"I'm sure my Dad would love that." He said. "Anyway, he has surgeries all weekend and my Mom is working on this big case and she's going to bring Laura to the office, so I'll probably be alone for thanksgiving, again."

"You can come to my house?" She offered. "Caitlin is coming, she comes every year."

Liam frowned. "Shouldn't you check with your parents first?"

"There's always so many people, they won't mind." She said. "But I'll check with them if it will make you feel better."

"Alright, let me know." He nodded and leaned down to kiss her before heading to practise. "I'll call you later."

"Okay, bye." She said, smiling as she turned around to see Caitlin.

"Look at you," She shook her head. "All lit up like a Christmas tree."

"You're one to talk." Sophia said. "How's Mark?"

"Mark and I are not are corny as you and Liam." Caitlin said as they waited outside to be picked up. "You two are like Haley and Nathan from One Tree Hill."

"I'm okay with that." She shrugged with a smile. "I invited him to Thanksgiving."

"Oh, that poor boy." She said.

Sophia frowned. "What?"

"All those people, all those FBI agents," She shook her head. "That's intimidating."

"It won't be that bad," She said. "And you'll be there."

"Right," She nodded. "Because that will definitely make things less awkward."

"Well then, invite Mark." Sophia said as they climbed into the back of the SUV driven by Morgan with JJ in the passenger seat.

"How was school?" Morgan asked, turning his head to look at them.

"Good," They echoed.

He smirked at the typical response. "So, nothing exciting happened?"

"Not really," Sophia said. "Can we add two more people to Thanksgiving dinner?"

"Who?" Morgan asked with a frown.

JJ grinned at him before looking at the girls. "Boyfriends?"

"Maybe," Sophia said, drawing the word out. "Can they come? We have enough food and room, right?"

"I'm sure you can make room." JJ said. "There's always enough food."

"They can come but you can't ignore your family." Morgan said. "Your Grandmother and Aunts will want to spend time with you, so no disappearing."

_Flashback_

_Garcia came back from the bathroom and glanced around the waiting room. Sophia wasn't there. She waited for a few minutes, calling her before going to check the cafeteria, the bathrooms, and outside, as she looked for her before heading back to the waiting room. JJ was back from getting them coffee and frowned when Garcia came over to her._

"_What's wrong?" She asked, handing her a coffee._

"_Sophia is gone." She said. "I went to the bathroom and when I came back she was just gone."_

"_Did you try calling her?" She asked._

"_She's not answering," Garcia shook her head. "I don't think I can handle worrying about her too."_

"_I'm sure she's fine." She said. "She probably just needed some time alone."_

"_Probably," Garcia sighed. "I'm going to call Morgan."_

"_Hey, any news?" Morgan asked._

"_Nothing yet." She said. "But Sophia has disappeared."_

"_What do you mean?" He frowned. "Where is she?"_

"_I don't know," Garcia said, and Morgan noticed how tired she sounded. "JJ went to get coffee and I left for two minutes to go to the bathroom and she left. I've check the cafeteria and other bathrooms and outside, and I don't know where she is, Derek."_

"_I'm sure she's fine." He said. _

"_She's not fine." Garcia snapped. "She's distraught and she's scared."_

"_Do you want me to come back?"_

"_I don't know what to do, Derek."_

"_I'll be right there."_

_Morgan headed back to the hospital and noticed Sophia sitting on a bench outside. He walked over to her and sat down beside her. He leaned forward with his elbows on his knees and looked at her quietly, waiting for her. She was staring at the sky and he could see the fresh tears in her worried eyes. _

"_Mama is really worried about you," Morgan spoke up. "It's not fair to her, or any of us, to take off like this, especially now."_

"_I can't just sit in there," She said, her voice small as she shrugged. "I don't want to hear he died in some hospital or from some doctor I don't even know, or who didn't even know him."_

"_Baby, it's going to hurt no matter who tells you or how you find out." Morgan said. "But you're getting ahead of yourself."_

"_Am I?" Sophia turned to him. "You were with him when he got shot and in the ambulance. Tell me I'm over reacting."_

"_Sophia," Morgan said gently._

"_Exactly." She interrupted. _

"_I won't lie to you, it was bad." He said. "But it's been bad before and things turned out alright."_

_Morgan led Sophia back inside and to the waiting room. Garcia and JJ were talking to a daughter and Sophia nervously glanced at Morgan as they walked over._

"_He's okay," Garcia said. "He's out of surgery."_

"_Can we see him?" Sophia asked._

"_Sure," The doctor nodded. _

_They walked into the room and Sophia looked at him lying in the bed with tubes and wires and machines everywhere. Any relief she had felt before had disappeared again, she was still scared. Morgan put his arm around her and pulled her into him as he rubbed her back. He knew this was hard for her, it was hard for them all. _

_End Flashback_

OOOOO

Sophia ran down the stairs when she heard the doorbell ring. It was thanksgiving and they were having all their family and friends over for dinner and she was excited to see everyone, especially those she didn't get to see often. Morgan's Mother and sisters were flying in from Chicago and Desiree had texted Sophia from the car when they pulled into the driveway.

Sophia yanked the door open and excitedly hugged Desiree. "You're here!"

"I know, I know." She said. "I need to visit more often."

"You all need to visit more," Morgan said as he came to the door. "Hi Mom,"

"You know the roads work both ways." Fran said. "You should visit me more too."

"Yes, I should." He nodded as he greeted his sisters. "Penelope and Reid are in the kitchen and everyone else should be here soon."

"Does that include Sophia's boyfriend?" Fran asked and grinned at Sarah and Desiree. "We can't wait to meet him."

"Dad!" Sophia exclaimed. "You told them?"

"If I left it up to you, you wouldn't tell them until the boy was standing in front of them." He said.

"Yeah, so?" She asked. "What's wrong with that plan?"

"It's not very fair to Liam." He said. "

"Hey, Sophia," Desire grinned. "Want to make some cookies?"

"You two are not allowed near the kitchen." Morgan said as he pointed at them.

"You don't want our help?" Sophia asked with fake shock.

"I think we can manage." Reid said as he came out of the kitchen. "Does Caitlin need a ride?"

"Yeah, her Mom got called into work again." She said. "Can we go and get her now?"

Reid nodded and grabbed his jacket with Sophia following him out to the car. "Are you ready to have a house full of people?"

"I'm excited." Sophia said. "I'm pretty thankful for our non-traditional family this year."

"Oh yeah?" Reid grinned. "Why this year?"

"Well, we almost lost you." She said quietly.

_Flashback_

_Sophia took a deep breath and opened the door, slipping into the room silently._

_"Hi," she whispered as Reid turned his attention to her._

"_Hey," He said softly. "Are you feeling better?"_

_She bit her lip and nodded. "Yeah, considering I was never sick."_

_He looked at her curiously before gesturing towards the chair. "Come here." She walked over and sat down in the chair. "What's going on?"_

"_I came in here after you got out of surgery. You were just lying here, not moving, and it was so hard to see you like that." She explained. "I don't want to lose someone else. I can't go through that again."_

_"Sophia, listen to me." Reid said, stopping her from going on. "You are not going to lose me."_

_"Promise?"_

_"I promise. I'm not going anywhere." Reid smiled as he held out his arm. "Come here, sweetheart."_

_Sophia laid down on her side beside him as he wrapped his arm tightly around her shoulders. He couldn't see her face, it was buried in his arm, but he could feel her shaking slightly and he could hear her crying softly. _

"_It's okay," He said softly. "I'm okay."_

_She nodded and was quiet for a few moments. "Are they going to make me leave?" She asked in a small voice. "I don't want to leave."_

"_You can stay here as long as you like." He said and they both drifted off into sleep shortly after. _

_End Flashback_

"That's why you've been looking forward to thanksgiving this year?" He asked with a slight frown. "Why didn't you talk to me about it?"

"It wasn't just that. Caitlin only has her Mom and she works all the time, and Liam's parents seem to care more about work than him," She shrugged. "Thanksgiving makes me realize how great my family is and how lucky I am to have all these people in my life."

Reid smiled at her. "We're pretty lucky to have you too."

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